Novel inhibitors of glutaminase

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure provides compounds of formula (I) to (III) as glutaminase inhibitors, methods of preparing them, pharmaceutical compositions containing them and methods of treatment, prevention and/or amelioration of diseases or disorders involving glutamine

The present application claims the benefit of Indian Patent Application Nos. 36/CHE/2014, filed Jan. 6, 2014, 39/CHE/2014, filed Jan. 6, 2014, 2639/CHE/2014, filed May 29, 2014, 2647/CHE/2014, filed May 29, 2014, 2783/CHE/2014, filed Jun. 6 2014, 3525/CHE/2014 filed Jul. 18, 2014, 3612/CHE/2014, filed Jul. 24, 2014, 3613/CHE/2014, filed Jul. 24, 2014, and 5438/CHE/2014, filed Oct. 31, 2014, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides compounds of formula (I) to (III) as glutaminase inhibitors, methods of preparing them, pharmaceutical compositions containing them and methods of treatment, prevention and/or amelioration of diseases or disorders involving glutamine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Glutaminase (glutaminase I, L-glutaminase, glutamine aminohydrolase) is an amido-hydrolase enzyme that generates glutamate from glutamine. Glutaminase has been reported to have tissue-specific isoenzymes. Glutaminase has an important role in glial cells. Glutamine is the most abundant free amino acid in the human body; it is essential for the growth of normal and neoplastic cells and for the culture of many cell types. Glutamine is an important source of energy for neoplastic tissues, and products of its metabolism include, among others, glutamate (Glu) and glutathione (GSH), the two molecules that play a key role in tumor proliferation, invasiveness and resistance to therapy. Glutamine hydrolysis in normal and transforming mammalian tissues alike is carried out by different isoforms of glutaminases, of which the two major types are liver-type glutaminase (LGA) and kidney-type glutaminase (KGA) (see Neurochem Int., 2009 July-August; 55(1-3):71-5. doi: 10.1016/j.neuint.2009.01.008. Epub 2009 February).

Cancer cells require a robust supply of reduced nitrogen to produce nucleotides, non-essential amino acids and a high cellular redox activity. Glutamine provides a major substrate for respiration as well as nitrogen for the production of proteins, hexosamines, and macromolecules. Therefore, glutamine is one of key molecules in cancer metabolism during cell proliferation. The notion of targeting glutamine metabolism in cancer, originally rationalized by the number of pathways fed by this nutrient, has been reinforced by more recent studies demonstrating that its metabolism is regulated by oncogenes. Glutaminase (GA) is the first enzyme that converts glutamine to glutamate, which is in turn converted to alpha-ketoglutarate for further metabolism in the tricarboxylic acid cycle. Different GA isoforms in mammals are encoded by two genes, Gls and Gls2. As each enzymatic form of GA has distinct kinetic and molecular characteristics, it has been speculated that the differential regulation of GA isoforms may reflect distinct functions or requirements in different tissues or cell states. GA encoded by the Gls gene (GLS) has been demonstrated to be regulated by oncogenes and to support tumor cell growth. GA encoded by the Gls2 gene (GLS2) reduces cellular sensitivity to reactive oxygen species associated apoptosis possibly through glutathione-dependent antioxidant defense, and therefore to behave more like a tumor suppressor. Thus, modulation of GA function may be a new therapeutic target for cancer treatment (see Matds et al., Curr. Mol. Med., 2013 May; 13(4), 514-534).

One hallmark of cancer cells is their adaptation to rely upon an altered metabolic scheme that includes changes in the glycolytic pathway, known as the Warburg effect, and elevated glutamine metabolism. Glutaminase, a mitochondrial enzyme, plays a key role in the metabolism of glutamine in cancer cells, and its inhibition could significantly impact malignant transformation (see Katt et al., Mol. Cancer Ther., 11(6); 1269-78, 2012). Feeding off the breakdown of glutamine, cancer cells are able to grow and divide into a tumour. Glutaminase therefore makes a promising therapeutic target for the prevention of tumour progression. Inhibition of this enzyme could effectively starve the cancer cells of their energy source. See Medina et al., J. Nutr., Sep. 1, 2001, Vol. 131, No. 9 2539S-2542S.

Glutaminase plays a crucial role in the mechanisms of cancer, such as cell survival, proliferation and growth. There are two reported glutaminase inhibitors namely 6-diazo-5-oxo-L-norleucine (DON) which was isolated originally from Streptomyces in a sample of Peruvian soil and was characterized in 1956 by Henry W Dion (see Dion et al., Antibiotics and Chemotherapy, 1954, 78, 3075-3077) and suggested as a cancer therapy and bis-2-(5-phenylacetamido-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)ethyl sulfide (BPTES) disclosed by Elan Pharmaceuticals. There is an ongoing research effort reported by other groups working at Cornell University and Calithera Biosciencesis to discover and identify small molecule inhibitors of glutaminase. DON has also been reported to be evaluated in combination with PEG-PGA by New Medical Enzymes AG. In addition to BPTES and DON, other reported glutaminase inhibitors are as summarised in the table below.

Agent Company Clinical status BPTES — Discovery CB-839 Calithera Biosciences Phase-I Compound 968 Cornell University Preclinical GlutaDON New Medical Enzymes Phase-2 (PEG-PGA + DON) AG GlutaChemo New Medical Enzymes Preclinical (PEG-PGA + an ideal candidate) AG

Reviews and studies regarding Glutamine and Glutaminase in cancer and other diseases have been given by Medina et al., J. Nutr., Sep. 1, 2001, Vol. 131, No. 9, 2539S-2542S; Ajit G. Thmas et al., Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 443, 2014, 32-36; Monica Szeliga et al., Neurochemistrt Intermationa, 55, 2009, 71-77; and Curthoys et al., Annu. Rev. Nutr., 1995, 15, 133-159. All of these literature disclosures are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

Patent literature related to glutaminase inhibitors includes International Publication Nos. WO 99/09825, WO 00/59533, WO 03/022261, WO 04/108153, WO 07/128588, WO 10/033871, WO 10/111504, WO 11/076967, WO 11/143160, WO 12/006506, WO 12/034123, WO 13/044596, WO 13/078123, WO 14/078645, WO 14/089048, WO 14/043633, WO 14/079011, WO 14/079136, WO 14/079150, and WO 14/081925, U.S. Publication Nos. 2002/0115698, 2006/0276438, 2013/0157998, 2014/0050699, 2014/0194421, 2014/0369961, 2015/0004134, 2014/0142081, and 2014/0142146, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,552,427, 6,451,828, 8,465,736, 8,604,016, and 8,865,718 and European Publication No. 656210, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

There still remains an unmet need for novel glutaminase inhibitors for the treatment of diseases and disorders associated with cell proliferation such as cancer and other immunological and neurological disorders.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to compounds of formulas (I) to (III), methods for their preparation, pharmaceutical compositions containing them, and methods of treatment with them. In particular the compounds of formula (I) to (III) and their pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof are useful in the treatment, prevention and/or amelioration of diseases or disorders involving glutamine.

In one aspect, the present invention relates to a compound of formula (I):

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein

L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-;

L₁ is absent or selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—;

L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, or substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl;

L₃ is absent or selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—;

A and B are selected from

-   -   (a) A is selected from

and

-   -   B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; or

-   -   (b) A is selected from

and

-   -   B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³;

each occurrence of R³ is, independently, halogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy;

P and Q are independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, NR^(x)—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —C(═O)NH—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—NH—C(═O)—, —NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, —S(═O)_(q)NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)NR^(x)—, NR^(x)C(═S)NR^(x)—, —C(═O)—, —C(═S)—, —C(═O)ONR^(x)—, ═N—N(R^(x))—, —N(R^(x))—N═ or —NR^(x)C(═O)O—;

R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—N(R^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR, —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y), —NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z);

each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) or S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group;

each occurrence of q is independently 0, 1 or 2 and

each occurrence of r is independently 0, 1 or 2.

For avoidance of doubt and unless indicated otherwise, formulas are to be read in the direction they are shown. For example, (a) if P is —CH₂—C(═O)—NH— in formula (I) (i.e., —R¹—P-A-L-B-Q-R²) than the compound would have the formula R¹—CH₂—C(O)—NH-A-L-B-Q-R² or (b) if P is —CH₂—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂— in formula (I) (i.e., R¹—P-A-L-B-Q-R²) than the compound would have the formula R¹—CH₂—C(O)—NH-A-L-B—NH—C(═O)—CH₂—R².

Yet another embodiment is a compound having the formula (IA):

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein A and B are selected from

(a) A is selected from

and

B is selected from

wherein at least one of A and B is substituted with one or more R³; or

(b) A is selected from

and

B is selected from

wherein at least one of A and B is substituted with one or more R³;

each occurrence of R³ is independently, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy; and

all the other variables (R¹, R², P, Q and L) are as defined above in relation to formula (I).

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

A is selected from

and

B is selected from

wherein R³ is hydrogen, halogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl (e.g., methyl).

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

A is selected from

wherein R³ is hydrogen, halogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl (e.g., methyl); and

B is selected from

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

A is selected from

and

B is selected from

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

B is selected from

and

A is selected from

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

(i) A is selected from

and

B is selected from

or

(ii) B is selected from

and

A is selected from

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

A is

and B is

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

A is

and B is

Further preferred are compounds having the formula (I) or (IA), wherein

-   -   (i) A is

and B is

-   -   (ii) A is

and B is

Yet another embodiment of the present invention relates to a compound of formula (II):

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein

L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-;

L₁ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—;

L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₁₀ cycloalkyl;

L₃ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—;

A and B are selected from

(a) A is selected from

and

-   -   B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; or

(b) A is selected from

and

B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; or

(c) both A and B are independently selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³;

each occurrence of R³ is, independently, hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkoxy, or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkylamino;

P and Q are independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, NR^(x)—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —C(═O)NH—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—NH—C(═O)—, —NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, —S(═O)_(q)NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)NR^(x)—, NR^(x)C(═S)NR^(x)—, —C(═O)—, —C(═S)—, —C(═O)ONR^(x)—, ═N—N(R^(x))—, —N(R^(x))—N═ or —NR^(x)C(═O)O—;

R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y), —NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z);

each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) or S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group;

each occurrence of q is independently 0, 1 or 2 and

each occurrence of r is independently 0, 1 or 2.

For avoidance of doubt and unless indicated otherwise, formulas are to be read in the direction they are shown. For example, (a) if P is —CH₂—C(═O)—NH— in formula (II) (i.e., —R¹—P-A-L-B-Q-R²) than the compound would have the formula R¹—CH₂—C(O)—NH-A-L-B-Q-R² or (b) if P is —CH₂—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂— in formula (II) (i.e., R¹—P-A-L-B-Q-R²) than the compound would have the formula R¹—CH₂—C(O)—NH-A-L-B—NH—C(═O)—CH₂—R².

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), wherein

A is selected from

and B is selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), wherein

A is selected from

and B is selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), wherein

(i) A is

and B is selected from

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), wherein both A and B are independently selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), wherein both A and B are independently selected from

The present invention also relates to a compound of formula (III):

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein

L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-; wherein

L₁ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—;

L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₁₀ cycloalkyl;

L₃ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—;

A and B are selected from

(i) A is selected from

and

B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; or

(ii) A is selected from

and

B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³;

each occurrence of R³ is, independently, hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy;

P and Q are independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, NR^(x)—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —C(═O)NH—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—NH—C(═O)—, —NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, —S(═O)_(q)NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)NR^(x)—, NR^(x)C(═S)NR^(x)—, —C(═O)—, —C(═S)—, —C(═O)ONR^(x)—, ═N—N(R^(x))—, —N(R^(x))—N═ or —NR^(x)C(═O)O—;

R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y)—NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z);

each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) or S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group;

each occurrence of q is independently 0, 1 or 2; and

each occurrence of r is independently 0, 1 or 2.

For avoidance of doubt and unless indicated otherwise, formulas are to be read in the direction they are shown. For example, (a) if P is —CH₂—C(═O)—NH— in formula (III) (i.e., R¹—P-A-L-B-Q-R²) than the compound would have the formula R¹—CH₂—C(O)—NH-A-L-B-Q-R² or (b) if P is —CH₂—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂— in formula (III) (i.e., —R¹—P-A-L-B-Q-R²) than the compound would have the formula R¹—CH₂—C(O)—NH-A-L-B—NH—C(═O)—CH₂—R².

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), wherein

(i) A is selected from

and B is selected from,

wherein each of A and B is optionally substituted with one or more R³; or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; and each occurrence of R³ is, independently, hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), wherein

(i) A is selected from

and B is selected from,

wherein each of A and B is optionally substituted with one or more R³; or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from

wherein each of A and B is optionally substituted with one or more R³; each occurrence of R³ is independently hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy. Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), wherein

(i) A is

and B is selected from

wherein each of A and B is optionally substituted with one or more R³; or

(ii) A is selected from

and

B is

-   -   wherein each of A and B is optionally substituted with one or         more R³     -   each occurrence of R³ is independently hydrogen, halogen,         substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or         substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), wherein

(i) A is

and B is

or

(ii) A is

and B is

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (II) or (III), wherein each of P and Q are independently selected from —NR^(x)C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(z)—, —C(═S)NR^(z)—, or —NR^(x)—.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (II) or (III), wherein each of P and Q are independently selected from —NR^(x)C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)— or —NR^(x)—, wherein R^(x) and R^(y) are independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, halogen, hydroxy and substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (II) or (III), wherein each of P and Q are independently —NH—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—, wherein R^(x) and R^(y) are hydrogen.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (II) or (III), wherein each of P and Q are independently —NH—C(═O)—(CH₂)—, —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (II) or (III), wherein P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (II) or (III), wherein P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (II) or (III), wherein P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—.

Yet another embodiment is a compound having the formula (IB), (IC), (ID) or (IE):

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein

each occurrence of R³ is independently hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃alkyl, amino, nitro or C₁₋₃ alkoxy;

and all the other variables (L, R¹, R², R^(x) and R^(y)) are as defined above in relation to formulas (I) and (IA).

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID) or (IE), wherein

L₁ is absent, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl or NR^(x), wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl;

L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₄ alkyl or substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₄ alkynyl; and

L₃ is absent, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl or NR^(x), wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID) or (IE), wherein

L₁ is absent;

L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₄ alkyl; and

L₃ is absent.

Yet another embodiment is a compound having the formula (IIIA) or (IIIB):

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein all the variables (L, R¹, R², R³, R^(x) and R^(y)) are as defined above in relation to formula (III).

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II) wherein L₂ is selected from

wherein

each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is independently selected from hydrogen, nitro, hydroxy, cyano, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkylalkyl, and substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkenyl; or any two of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) (such as two groups bound to a common atom or adjacent atoms or any two groups which when joined form a chemically stable structure) may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted, saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR (where R′ is H or alkyl) or S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR′) group; and

each of s, t, u and v is 0, 1 or 2 with the proviso that the sum of s, t, u and v is not 0 (i.e., s+t+u+v is at least 1).

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein L₂ is selected from

wherein

each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is independently selected from hydrogen, nitro, hydroxy, cyano, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkylalkyl, and substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkenyl, or any two of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) (such as two groups bound to a common atom or adjacent atoms or any two groups which when joined form a chemically stable structure) may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted, saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR (where R′ is H or alkyl) or S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR′) group; and

each of s, t, u and v is 0, 1 or 2 with the proviso that the sum of s, t, u and v is not 0 or 1 (i.e., the sum of s, t, u, and v is at least 2).

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, C₁₋₃ alkyl or any two of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h), when bound to a common atom, may be joined to form oxo (═O) or substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl group.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II) wherein each of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and the sum of s, t, u and v is 1-4, such as 1, 2, 3 or 4.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein each of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and the sum of s, t, u and v is 2 to 4 (i.e., 2, 3 or 4).

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein each of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and each of s, t, u and v is 1.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein each of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen, s is 0, and each of t, u and v is 1.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein each of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen, s is 0, each of t and v are 1 and u is 2.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein each of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and s is 0, t is 1 and the sum of u and v is 1, 2 or 3.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II) wherein L₂ is selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein L₂ is selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein

L₁ is absent, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl or NR^(x), wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl;

L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₈cycloalkyl; and

L₃ is absent, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl or NR^(x), wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein

L₁ is absent or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₈cycloalkyl; and L₃ is absent or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein

(i) L₁ and L₃ are absent;

(ii) L₁ and L₃ are —CH₂—;

(iii) L₁ is absent and L₃ is —CH₂—; or

(iv) L₁ is —CH₂— and L₃ is absent.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II) wherein L (i.e., L₁-L₂-L₃) is selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II) wherein L (i.e., L₁-L₂-L₃) is selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein L (i.e., L₁-L₂-L₃) is selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB) wherein L (L₁-L₂-L₃) is

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID) or (IE) wherein each occurrence of R³ is independently selected from halogen and substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein each occurrence of R³ is independently selected from hydrogen, halogen and substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID) or (IE) wherein each occurrence of R³ is independently selected from fluoro and methyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein each occurrence of R³ is independently selected from hydrogen, fluoro or methyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein at least one of R¹ or R² is hydrogen.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, —NR^(z)R^(z), substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, and substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein each of R¹ and R² are independently selected from —NR^(z)R^(z), substituted or unsubstituted aryl and substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from substituted and unsubstituted aryl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from substituted and unsubstituted heteroaryl.

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein

(i) R¹ is substituted or unsubstituted aryl and R² is substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl;

(ii) R¹ is substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl and R² is substituted or unsubstituted aryl;

(iii) both R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl; or

(iv) both R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl;

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from

Further preferred is a compound having the formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) or (IIIB), wherein R^(x) and R^(y) are hydrogen.

Representative compounds of the present invention include those listed below (see also Tables 1 and 2) and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof. The present invention should not be construed to be limited to these compounds.

-   1.     2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-{5-[4-(5-(2-(2-methoxyphenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)but-1-ynyl]pyridin-2-yl}acetamide -   2.     2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-{5-[4-(5-(2-(2-methoxyphenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl]pyridin-2-yl}acetamide -   3.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   4.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-2-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   5.     2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-2-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   6.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyrazin-2-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   7.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(2-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyrimidin-5-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   8.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   9.     N-(6-Methyl-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide -   10.     2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   11.     2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   12.     2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)     acetamide -   13.     2-(3-(Methylsulfonyl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   14.     2-(4-(Methylsulfonyl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   15.     2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)     pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   16.     2-(3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)     acetamido)-1, 3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   17.     2-(3-Cyanophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   18.     2-(3-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   19.     2-(2-Fluorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   20.     2-(3-Fluorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   21.     N-(6-Fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide -   22.     2-(Pyridin-4-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   23.     2-Chloro-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,     3, 4-thiadiazol-2-yl)propanamide -   24.     2-Chloro-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,     3, 4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butanamide -   25.     2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)     butyl) pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   26.     2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)     butyl) pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   27.     N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(1H-pyrazol-1-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide -   28.     2-(Pyrazin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)     butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   29.     N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide -   30.     2-(3-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)     acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   31.     2-(4-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)     acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   32.     N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)     butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   33. Tert-butyl     4-(4-(2-oxo-2-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-ylamino)ethyl)phenyl)piperidine-1-carboxylate -   34.     2-(4-(Piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)     pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide hydrochloride -   35.     2-(3,5-Bis(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)     phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   36.     2-(3-(Piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)     pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide hydrochloride -   37.     3-Fluoro-6-methyl-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)picolinamide -   38.     N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   39.     N-(6-Fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(methylsulfonamido)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide -   40.     N,N′-(5,5′-(Butane-1,4-diyl)bis(pyridine-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)     acetamide) -   41.     N-(5-(4-(3-Fluoro-4-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)phenyl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   42.     N-(5-(4-(3-Fluoro-4-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)phenyl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide

TABLE 1 Ex. Structure  1

 2

 3

 4

 5

 6

 7

 8

 9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

-   101. N,N′-(5,     5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-phenylacetamide) -   102.     N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide) -   103.     N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide) -   104.     N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide) -   105.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-((4-((5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)methyl)cyclohexyl)methyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide: -   106. N,N′-(5,     5′-(Cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide) -   107.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)     pyridin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   108.     2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)     pyridin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide -   109.     2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-((3-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)cyclobutyl)methyl)     pyridin-2-yl)acetamide -   110.     2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)     pyridazin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

TABLE 2 Ex. Structure 101

102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110

Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a method for inhibiting glutaminase in a patient by administering to the patient an effective amount of at least one compound of the present invention (for example, a compound of formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA), or (IIIB) as defined above).

Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a method for treating an inflammatory, autoimmune or proliferative disease (e.g., via inhibition of glutaminase) by administering to a patient in need of such treatment an effective amount of at least one compound of the present invention. In one embodiment, the compound of the present invention inhibits glutaminase (i.e., an effective amount of the compound is administered to inhibit glutaminase).

Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a method for treating a inflammatory, autoimmune or proliferative disease (e.g., via inhibition of glutaminase) by administering to a patient in need of such treatment an effective amount of at least one compound of the present invention, in combination (simultaneously or sequentially) with at least one other anti-inflammatory, immunomodulator or anti-cancer agent. In one embodiment, the compound of the present invention inhibits glutaminase.

More particularly, the compounds of formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA), and (IIIB) and pharmaceutically acceptable esters or salts thereof can be administered for the treatment, prevention and/or amelioration of diseases or disorders associated with glutamine, in particular the amelioration of diseases or disorders mediated by glutamine, including, but not limited to, inflammatory diseases or disorders, autoimmune diseases or disorders, and cancer and other proliferative diseases or disorders.

The compounds of the present invention are useful in the treatment of a variety of cancers, including, but not limited to:

-   -   carcinoma, including that of the bladder, breast, colon, kidney,         liver, lung, including small cell lung cancer, esophagus, gall         bladder, ovary, pancreas, stomach, cervix, thyroid, prostate,         and skin, including squamous cell carcinoma;     -   hematopoietic tumors of lymphoid lineage, including leukemia,         acute lymphocytic leukemia, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, B-cell         lymphoma, T-cell lymphoma, Hodgkin's lymphoma, non-Hodgkins         lymphoma, hairy cell lymphoma and Burkett's lymphoma;     -   hematopoietic tumors of myeloid lineage, including acute and         chronic myelogenous leukemias, myelodysplastic syndrome and         promyelocytic leukemia;     -   tumors of mesenchymal origin, including fibrosarcoma and         rhabdomyosarcoma;     -   tumors of the central and peripheral nervous system, including         astrocytoma, neuroblastoma, glioma and schwannomas; and     -   other tumors, including melanoma, seminoma, teratocarcinoma,         osteosarcoma, xenoderoma pigmentosum, keratoctanthoma, thyroid         follicular cancer and Kaposi's sarcoma.

Due to the key role of glutaminase and glutamine in the regulation of cellular proliferation, the glutaminase inhibitors of the present invention may act as reversible cytostatic agents and therefore may be useful in the treatment of any disease process which features abnormal cellular proliferation, e.g., benign prostatic hyperplasia, familial adenomatosis polyposis, neuro-fibromatosis, atherosclerosis, pulmonary fibrosis, arthritic disease (e.g., arthritis), psoriasis, glomerulonephritis, restenosis following angioplasty or vascular surgery, hypertrophic scar formation, inflammatory bowel disease, transplantation rejection, endotoxic shock, and fungal infections.

The compounds of the present invention as modulators of apoptosis are useful in the treatment of cancer (including but not limited to those types mentioned herein above), viral infections (including but not limited to herpevirus, poxvirus, Epstein-Barr virus, Sindbis virus and adenovirus), prevention of AIDS development in HIV-infected individuals, autoimmune diseases (including but not limited to systemic lupus, erythematosus, autoimmune mediated glomerulonephritis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease, and autoimmune diabetes mellitus), neurodegenerative disorders (including but not limited to Alzheimer's disease, AIDS-related dementia, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, retinitis pigmentosa, spinal muscular atrophy and cerebellar degeneration), myelodysplastic syndromes, aplastic anemia, ischemic injury associated with myocardial infarctions, stroke and reperfusion injury, arrhythmia, atherosclerosis, toxin-induced or alcohol related liver diseases, hematological diseases (including but not limited to chronic anemia and aplastic anemia), degenerative diseases of the musculoskeletal system (including but not limited to osteoporosis and arthritis) aspirin-sensitive rhinosinusitis, cystic fibrosis, multiple sclerosis, kidney diseases and cancer pain.

The compounds of present invention can modulate the level of cellular RNA and DNA synthesis. These agents are therefore useful in the treatment of viral infections (including but not limited to HIV, human papilloma virus, herpesvirus, poxvirus, Epstein-Barr virus, Sindbis virus and adenovirus).

The compounds of the present invention are useful in the chemoprevention of cancer. Chemoprevention is defined as inhibiting the development of invasive cancer by either blocking the initiating mutagenic event or by blocking the progression of pre-malignant cells that have already suffered an insult or inhibiting tumor relapse. The compounds described herein are also useful in inhibiting tumor angiogenesis and metastasis. One embodiment of the invention is a method of inhibiting tumor angiogenesis or metastasis in a patient in need thereof by administering an effective amount of one or more compounds of the present invention.

Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of treating an immune system-related disease (e.g., an autoimmune disease), a disease or disorder involving inflammation (e.g., asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, glomerulonephritis, neuroinflammatory diseases, multiple sclerosis, uveitis and disorders of the immune system), cancer or other proliferative disease, a hepatic disease or disorder, or a renal disease or disorder. The method includes administering an effective amount of one or more compounds of the present invention.

Examples of immune disorders include, but are not limited to, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis, inflammatory bowel disease, dermatitis, osteoarthritis, asthma, inflammatory muscle disease, allergic disease (e.g., allergic rhinitis), vaginitis, interstitial cystitis, scleroderma, osteoporosis, eczema, allogeneic or xenogeneic transplantation (organ, bone marrow, stem cells and other cells and tissues) graft rejection, graft-versus-host disease, lupus erythematosus, inflammatory disease, type I diabetes, pulmonary fibrosis, dermatomyositis, Sjogren's syndrome, thyroiditis (e.g., Hashimoto's and autoimmune thyroiditis), myasthenia gravis, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis, chronic relapsing hepatitis, primary biliary cirrhosis, allergic conjunctivitis and atopic dermatitis.

In one embodiment, the compounds described herein are used as immunosuppressants to prevent transplant graft rejections, allogeneic or xenogeneic transplantation rejection (organ, bone marrow, stem cells, other cells and tissues), and graft-versus-host disease. In other embodiments, transplant graft rejections result from tissue or organ transplants. In further embodiments, graft-versus-host disease results from bone marrow or stem cell transplantation. One embodiment is a method of preventing or decreasing the risk of transplant graft rejection, allogeneic or xenogeneic transplantation rejection (organ, bone marrow, stem cells, other cells and tissues), or graft-versus-host disease by administering an effective amount of one or more compounds of the present invention.

The compounds of the present invention are also useful in combination (administered together or sequentially) with known anti-cancer treatments, such as radiation therapy or with cytostatic, cytotoxic or anticancer agents, such as for example, but not limited to, DNA interactive agents, such as cisplatin or doxorubicin; topoisomerase II inhibitors, such as etoposide; topoisomerase I inhibitors such as CPT-11 or topotecan; tubulin interacting agents, such as paclitaxel, docetaxel or the epothilones (for example ixabepilone), either naturally occurring or synthetic; hormonal agents, such as tamoxifen; thymidilate synthase inhibitors, such as 5-fluorouracil; and anti-metabolites, such as methotrexate, other tyrosine kinase inhibitors such as Iressa and OSI-774; angiogenesis inhibitors; EGF inhibitors; VEGF inhibitors; CDK inhibitors; SRC inhibitors; c-Kit inhibitors; Her1/2 inhibitors and monoclonal antibodies directed against growth factor receptors such as erbitux (EGF) and herceptin (Her2) and other protein kinase modulators as well.

The compounds of the present invention are also useful in combination (administered together or sequentially) with one or more steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or immune selective anti-inflammatory derivatives (ImSAIDs).

The invention further provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising one or more compounds of the present invention (such as a compound having formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA), or (IIIB)) together with a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier. The pharmaceutical composition may further comprise one or more of the active ingredients identified above, such as other steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), immune selective anti-inflammatory derivatives (ImSAIDs) or anti-cancer agents.

In one embodiment, the pharmaceutical composition includes a therapeutically effective amount of one or more compounds of formula (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA), or (IIIB).

Yet another embodiment is a method of treating autoimmune disorders in a patient in need thereof by administering a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention. For example, the compounds of the present invention are effective for treating asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, lupus and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE).

Yet another embodiment is a method of treating allergic rhinitis in a patient in need thereof by administering a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention.

Yet another embodiment is a method of treating cancer in a patient in need thereof by administering a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention. For example, the compounds of the present invention are effective for treating hematopoietic tumors of lymphoid lineage, leukemia, acute lymphocytic leukemia, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, B-cell lymphoma, T-cell lymphoma, Hodgkin's lymphoma, non-Hodgkins lymphoma, hairy cell lymphoma and Burkett's lymphoma; hematopoietic tumors of myeloid lineage, acute myelogenous leukemias, chronic myelogenous leukemias, myelodysplastic syndrome and promyelocytic leukemia. The compounds of the present invention are also effective for treating carcinoma of the bladder, carcinoma of the breast, carcinoma of the colon, carcinoma of the kidney, carcinoma of the liver, carcinoma of the lung, small cell lung cancer, esophageal cancer, gall bladder cancer, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, stomach cancer, cervical cancer, thyroid cancer, prostate cancer, skin cancer, squamous cell carcinoma, tumors of mesenchymal origin, fibrosarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, tumors of the central and peripheral nervous system, astrocytoma, neuroblastoma, glioma, schwannoma, melanoma, seminoma, teratocarcinoma, osteosarcoma, xenoderoma pigmentosum, keratoctanthoma, thyroid follicular cancer and Kaposi's sarcoma.

Yet another embodiment is a method of treating leukemia in a patient in need thereof by administering a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention. For example, the compounds of the present invention are effective for treating chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), multiple myeloma (MM), small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL), and indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (I-NHL).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As used herein the following definitions shall apply unless otherwise indicated. Further many of the groups defined herein can be optionally substituted. The listing of substituents in the definition is exemplary and is not to be construed to limit the substituents defined elsewhere in the specification.

The term “alkyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to a straight or branched hydrocarbon chain radical consisting solely of carbon and hydrogen atoms, containing no unsaturation, having from one to eight carbon atoms, and which is attached to the rest of the molecule by a single bond, e.g., methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, 1-methylethyl (isopropyl), n-butyl, n-pentyl, and 1,1-dimethylethyl (t-butyl). The term “C₁₋₃ alkyl” refers to an alkyl group as defined above having up to 3 carbon atoms. The term “C₁₋₆ alkyl” refers to an alkyl group as defined above having up to 6 carbon atoms. In appropriate circumstances, the term “alkyl” refers to a hydrocarbon chain radical as mentioned above which is bivalent.

The term “alkenyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to an aliphatic hydrocarbon group containing one or more carbon-carbon double bonds and which may be a straight or branched or branched chain having about 2 to about 10 carbon atoms, e.g., ethenyl, 1-propenyl, 2-propenyl (allyl), iso-propenyl, 2-methyl-1-propenyl, 1-butenyl, and 2-butenyl. The term “C₂₋₆ alkenyl” refers to an alkenyl group as defined above having up to 6 carbon atoms. In appropriate circumstances, the term “alkenyl” refers to a hydrocarbon group as mentioned above which is bivalent.

The term “alkynyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to a straight or branched chain hydrocarbyl radical having at least one carbon-carbon triple bond, and having in the range of 2 to up to 12 carbon atoms (with radicals having in the range of 2 to up to 10 carbon atoms presently being preferred) e.g., ethynyl, propynyl, and butnyl. The term “C₂₋₆ alkynyl” refers to an alkynyl group as defined above having up to 6 carbon atoms. In appropriate circumstances, the term “alkynyl” refers to a hydrocarbyl radical as mentioned above which is bivalent.

The term “alkoxy” unless otherwise specified, denotes an alkyl, cycloalkyl, or cycloalkylalkyl group as defined above attached via an oxygen linkage to the rest of the molecule. The term “substituted alkoxy” refers to an alkoxy group where the alkyl constituent is substituted (i.e., —O-(substituted alkyl). For example “alkoxy” refers to the group —O-alkyl, including from 1 to 8 carbon atoms of a straight, branched, cyclic configuration and combinations thereof attached to the parent structure through an oxygen atom. Examples include methoxy, ethoxy, propoxy, isopropoxy, cyclopropyloxy, and cyclohexyloxy. In appropriate circumstances, the term “alkoxy” refers to a group as mentioned above which is bivalent.

The term “cycloalkyl”, unless otherwise specified, denotes a non-aromatic mono or multicyclic ring system of about 3 to 12 carbon atoms such as cyclopropyl, cyclobutyl, cyclopentyl, and cyclohexyl. Examples of multicyclic cycloalkyl groups include perhydronaphthyl, adamantyl and norbornyl groups, bridged cyclic groups, and sprirobicyclic groups, e.g., sprio (4,4) non-2-yl. The term “C₃₋₆ cycloalkyl” refers to a cycloalkyl group as defined above having up to 6 carbon atoms. The term “C₃₋₁₀ cycloalkyl” refers to a cycloalkyl group as defined above having from 3 to 10 carbon atoms. The term “C₄₋₁₀ cycloalkyl” refers to a cycloalkyl group as defined above having from 4 to 10 carbon atoms. In appropriate circumstances, the term “cycloalkyl” refers to a ring system as mentioned above which is bivalent.

The term “cycloalkylalkyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to a cyclic ring-containing radical containing in the range of about 3 up to 8 carbon atoms directly attached to an alkyl group which is then attached to the main structure at any carbon from the alkyl group, such as cyclopropylmethyl, cyclobutylethyl, and cyclopentylethyl.

The term “cycloalkenyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to cyclic ring-containing radicals containing in the range of about 3 up to 8 carbon atoms with at least one carbon-carbon double bond such as cyclopropenyl, cyclobutenyl, and cyclopentenyl. The term “cycloalkenylalkyl” refers to a cycloalkenyl group directly attached to an alkyl group which is then attached to the main structure at any carbon from the alkyl group.

The term “aryl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to aromatic radicals having in the range of 6 up to 20 carbon atoms such as phenyl, naphthyl, tetrahydronaphthyl, indanyl, and biphenyl.

The term “arylalkyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to an aryl group as defined above directly bonded to an alkyl group as defined above, e.g., —CH₂C₆H₅ and —C₂H₅C₆H₅.

The term “heterocyclic ring”, unless otherwise specified, refers to a non-aromatic 3 to 15 member ring radical which consists of carbon atoms and at least one heteroatom selected from nitrogen, phosphorus, oxygen and sulfur. For purposes of this invention, the heterocyclic ring radical may be a mono-, bi-, tri- or tetracyclic ring system, which may include fused, bridged or spiro ring systems, and the nitrogen, phosphorus, carbon, oxygen or sulfur atoms in the heterocyclic ring radical may be optionally oxidized to various oxidation states. In addition, the nitrogen atom may be optionally quaternized. The heterocyclic ring radical may be attached to the main structure at any heteroatom or carbon atom.

The term “heterocyclyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to a heterocylic ring radical as defined above. The heterocylcyl ring radical may be attached to the main structure at any heteroatom or carbon atom.

The term “heterocyclylalkyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to a heterocylic ring radical as defined above directly bonded to an alkyl group. The heterocyclylalkyl radical may be attached to the main structure at any carbon atom in the alkyl group. Examples of such heterocycloalkyl radicals include, but are not limited to, dioxolanyl, thienyl[1,3]dithianyl, decahydroisoquinolyl, imidazolinyl, imidazolidinyl, isothiazolidinyl, isoxazolidinyl, morpholinyl, octahydroindolyl, octahydroisoindolyl, 2-oxopiperazinyl, 2-oxopiperidinyl, 2-oxopyrrolidinyl, oxazolidinyl, piperidinyl, piperazinyl, 4-piperidonyl, pyrrolidinyl, pyrazolidinyl, quinuclidinyl, thiazolidinyl, tetrahydrofuryl, trithianyl, tetrahydropyranyl, thiomorpholinyl, thiamorpholinyl, 1-oxo-thiomorpholinyl, and 1,1-dioxo-thiomorpholinyl.

The term “heteroaryl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to an optionally substituted 5 to 14 member aromatic ring having one or more heteroatoms selected from N, O, and S as ring atoms. The heteroaryl may be a mono-, bi- or tricyclic ring system. Examples of such “heterocyclic ring” or “heteroaryl” radicals include, but are not limited to, oxazolyl, thiazolyl, imidazolyl, pyrrolyl, furanyl, pyridinyl, pyrimidinyl, pyrazinyl, benzofuranyl, indolyl, benzothiazolyl, benzoxazolyl, carbazolyl, quinolyl, isoquinolyl, azetidinyl, acridinyl, benzodioxolyl, benzodioxanyl, benzofuranyl, carbazolyl, cinnolinyl, dioxolanyl, indolizinyl, naphthyridinyl, perhydroazepinyl, phenazinyl, phenothiazinyl, phenoxazinyl, phthalazinyl, pteridinyl, purinyl, quinazolinyl, quinoxalinyl, tetrazoyl, tetrahydroisoquinolyl, piperidinyl, piperazinyl, 2-oxopiperazinyl, 2-oxopiperidinyl, 2-oxopyrrolidinyl, 2-oxoazepinyl, azepinyl, 4-piperidonyl, pyrrolidinyl, pyridazinyl, oxazolinyl, oxazolidinyl, triazolyl, indanyl, isoxazolyl, isoxazolidinyl, morpholinyl, thiazolinyl, thiazolidinyl, isothiazolyl, quinuclidinyl, isothiazolidinyl, isoindolyl, indolinyl, isoindolinyl, octahydroindolyl, octahydroisoindolyl, decahydroisoquinolyl, benzimidazolyl, thiadiazolyl, benzopyranyl, tetrahydrofuryl, tetrahydropyranyl, thienyl, benzothienyl, thiamorpholinyl, thiamorpholinyl sulfoxide, thiamorpholinyl sulfone, dioxaphospholanyl, oxadiazolyl, chromanyl, and isochromanyl. The heteroaryl ring radical may be attached to the main structure at any heteroatom or carbon atom. The term “substituted heteroaryl” also includes ring systems substituted with one or more oxide (—O—) substituents, such as pyridinyl N-oxides.

The term “heteroarylalkyl”, unless otherwise specified, refers to a heteroaryl ring radical as defined above directly bonded to an alkyl group. The heteroarylalkyl radical may be attached to the main structure at any carbon atom from alkyl group.

The term “cyclic ring” refers to a cyclic ring containing 3 to 10 carbon atoms.

The term “substituted” unless otherwise specified, refers to substitution with any one or any combination of the following substituents which may be the same or different and are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, carboxyl, cyano, nitro, oxo (═O), thio (═S), substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, substituted or unsubstituted guanidine, —COOR^(x), —C(O)R^(x), —C(S)R^(x), —C(O)NR^(x)R^(y), —C(O)ONR^(x)R^(y), —NR^(y)R^(z), —NR^(x)CONR^(y)R^(z), —N(R^(x))SOR^(y), —N(R^(x))SO₂R^(y), —(═N—N(R^(x))R^(y)), —NR^(x)C(O)OR^(y), —NR^(x)R^(y), —NR^(x)C(O)R^(y)—, —NR^(x)C(S)R^(y)—NR^(x)C(S)NR^(y)R^(z), —SONR^(x)R^(y)—, —SO₂NR^(x)R^(y)—, —OR^(x), —OR^(x)C(O)NR^(y)R^(z), —OR^(x)C(O)OR^(y)—, —OC(O)R^(x), —OC(O)NR^(x)R^(y), —R^(x)NR^(y)C(O)R^(z), —R^(x)OR^(y), —R^(x)C(O)OR^(y), —R^(x)C(O)NR^(y)R^(z), —R^(x)C(O)R^(x), —R^(x)OC(O)R^(y), —SR^(x), —SOR^(x), —SO₂R^(x), and —ONO₂, wherein R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) in each of the above groups can be hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted amino, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, or substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or any two of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) may be joined to form a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-10 membered ring, which may optionally include heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(x) (e.g., R^(x) can be hydrogen or C₁₋₆ alkyl) or S. Substitution or the combinations of substituents envisioned by this invention are preferably those that result in the formation of a stable or chemically feasible compound. The term stable as used herein refers to the compounds or the structure that are not substantially altered when subjected to conditions to allow for their production, detection and preferably their recovery, purification and incorporation into a pharmaceutical composition. The substituents in the aforementioned “substituted” groups cannot be further substituted. For example, when the substituent on “substituted alkyl” is “substituted aryl”, the substituent on “substituted aryl” cannot be “substituted alkenyl”.

The term “halo”, “halide”, or, alternatively, “halogen” means fluoro, chloro, bromo or iodo. The terms “haloalkyl,” “haloalkenyl,” “haloalkynyl” and “haloalkoxy” include alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl and alkoxy structures that are substituted with one or more halo groups or with combinations thereof. For example, the terms “fluoroalkyl” and “fluoroalkoxy” include haloalkyl and haloalkoxy groups, respectively, in which the halo is fluorine.

The term “protecting group” or “PG” refers to a substituent that is employed to block or protect a particular functionality. Other functional groups on the compound may remain reactive. For example, an “amino-protecting group” is a substituent attached to an amino group that blocks or protects the amino functionality in the compound. Suitable amino-protecting groups include, but are not limited to, acetyl, trifluoroacetyl, tert-butoxycarbonyl (BOC), benzyloxycarbonyl (CBz) and 9-fluorenylmethylenoxycarbonyl (Fmoc). Similarly, a “hydroxy-protecting group” refers to a substituent of a hydroxy group that blocks or protects the hydroxy functionality. Suitable hydroxy-protecting groups include, but are not limited to, acetyl and silyl. A “carboxy-protecting group” refers to a substituent of the carboxy group that blocks or protects the carboxy functionality. Suitable carboxy-protecting groups include, but are not limited to, —CH₂CH₂SO₂Ph, cyanoethyl, 2-(trimethylsilyl)ethyl, 2-(trimethylsilyl)ethoxymethyl, 2-(p-toluenesulfonyl)ethyl, 2-(p-nitrophenylsulfenyl)ethyl, 2-(diphenylphosphino)-ethyl, and nitroethyl. For a general description of protecting groups and their use, see T. W. Greene, Protective Groups in Organic Synthesis, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1991.

Certain of the compounds described herein contain one or more asymmetric centers and can thus give rise to enantiomers, diastereomers, and other stereoisomeric forms that can be defined, in terms of absolute stereochemistry, as (R)- or (S)-. The present chemical entities, pharmaceutical compositions and methods are meant to include all such possible isomers, including racemic mixtures, optically pure forms and intermediate mixtures. Non-limiting examples of intermediate mixtures include a mixture of isomers in a ratio of 10:90, 13:87, 17:83, 20:80, or 22:78. Optically active (R)- and (S)-isomers can be prepared using chiral synthons or chiral reagents, or resolved using conventional techniques. When the compounds described herein contain olefinic double bonds or other centers of geometric asymmetry, and unless specified otherwise, it is intended that the compounds include both E and Z geometric isomers.

The term “tautomers” refers to compounds, which are characterized by relatively easy interconversion of isomeric forms in equilibrium. These isomers are intended to be covered by this invention. “Tautomers” are structurally distinct isomers that interconvert by tautomerization. “Tautomerization” is a form of isomerization and includes prototropic or proton-shift tautomerization, which is considered a subset of acid-base chemistry. “Prototropic tautomerization” or “proton-shift tautomerization” involves the migration of a proton accompanied by changes in bond order, often the interchange of a single bond with an adjacent double bond. Where tautomerization is possible (e.g. in solution), a chemical equilibrium of tautomers can be reached. An example of tautomerization is keto-enol tautomerization. A specific example of keto-enol tautomerization is the interconversion of pentane-2,4-dione and 4-hydroxypent-3-en-2-one tautomers. Another example of tautomerization is phenol-keto tautomerization. A specific example of phenol-keto tautomerization is the interconversion of pyridin-4-ol and pyridin-4(1H)-one tautomers.

Certain of the compounds described herein may have conformational stereoisomers, a form of stereoisomerism in which the isomers can be interconverted exclusively by rotations about formally single bonds. Such isomers are generally referred to as conformational isomers or conformers and may also be referred to as rotamers. The types of conformational isomers are related to the spatial orientations of the substituents between two vicinal atoms. Conformational isomerism includes ring conformation isomers such as cyclohexane conformations (chair and boat conformers) and cyclobutane “puckered” (or “butterfly”) conformations. “Atropisomers” refers to conformational stereoisomers which occur when rotation about a single bond in the molecule is prevented, or greatly slowed, as a result of steric interactions with other parts of the molecule and the substituents at both ends of the single bond are asymmetrical. Where the rotational barrier about the single bond is high enough, and interconversion between conformations is slow enough, separation and isolation of the isomeric species may be permitted. These isomers are intended to be covered by this invention.

A “leaving group or atom” is any group or atom that will, under the reaction conditions, cleave from the starting material, thus promoting reaction at a specified site. Suitable examples of such groups unless otherwise specified are halogen atoms and mesyloxy, p-nitrobenzensulphonyloxy and tosyloxy groups.

The term “prodrug” refers to a compound, which is an inactive precursor of a compound, converted into its active form in the body by normal metabolic processes. Prodrug design is discussed generally in Hardma, et al. (Eds.), Goodman and Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 9th ed., pp. 11-16 (1996). A thorough discussion is provided in Higuchi, et al., Prodrugs as Novel Delivery Systems, Vol. 14, ASCD Symposium Series, and in Roche (ed.), Bioreversible Carriers in Drug Design, American Pharmaceutical Association and Pergamon Press (1987). To illustrate, prodrugs can be converted into a pharmacologically active form through hydrolysis of, for example, an ester or amide linkage, thereby introducing or exposing a functional group on the resultant product. The prodrugs can be designed to react with an endogenous compound to form a water-soluble conjugate that further enhances the pharmacological properties of the compound, for example, increased circulatory half-life. Alternatively, prodrugs can be designed to undergo covalent modification on a functional group with, for example, glucuronic acid, sulfate, glutathione, amino acids, or acetate. The resulting conjugate can be inactivated and excreted in the urine, or rendered more potent than the parent compound. High molecular weight conjugates also can be excreted into the bile, subjected to enzymatic cleavage, and released back into circulation, thereby effectively increasing the biological half-life of the originally administered compound.

The term “ester” refers to a compound, which is formed by reaction between an acid and an alcohol with elimination of water. An ester can be represented by the general formula RCOOR′.

These prodrugs and esters are intended to be covered within the scope of this invention.

Additionally the instant invention also includes the compounds which differ only in the presence of one or more isotopically enriched atoms for example replacement of hydrogen with deuterium or tritium, or the replacement of a carbon by ¹³C- or ¹⁴C-enriched carbon.

The compounds of the present invention may also contain unnatural proportions of atomic isotopes at one or more of atoms that constitute such compounds. For example, the compounds may be radiolabeled with radioactive isotopes, such as for example tritium (³H), iodine-125 (¹²⁵I) or carbon-14 (¹⁴C). All isotopic variations of the compounds of the present invention, whether radioactive or not, are encompassed within the scope of the present invention.

Pharmaceutically acceptable salts forming part of this invention include salts derived from inorganic bases such as Li, Na, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Cu, Zn, and Mn; salts of organic bases such as N,N′-diacetylethylenediamine, glucamine, triethylamine, choline, hydroxide, dicyclohexylamine, metformin, benzylamine, trialkylamine, and thiamine; chiral bases such as alkylphenylamine, glycinol, and phenyl glycinol; salts of natural amino acids such as glycine, alanine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, norleucine, tyrosine, cystine, cysteine, methionine, proline, hydroxy proline, histidine, omithine, lysine, arginine, and serine; quaternary ammonium salts of the compounds of invention with alkyl halides, alkyl sulphates such as MeI and (Me)₂SO₄; non-natural amino acids such as D-isomers or substituted amino acids; guanidine; and substituted guanidine wherein the substituents are selected from nitro, amino, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, ammonium or substituted ammonium salts and aluminum salts. Salts may include acid addition salts where appropriate which are sulphates, nitrates, phosphates, perchlorates, borates, hydrohalides (e.g., hydrochlorides), acetates, tartrates, maleates, citrates, fumarates, succinates, palmoates, methanesulphonates, benzoates, salicylates, benzenesulfonates, ascorbates, glycerophosphates, and ketoglutarates.

When ranges are used herein for physical properties, such as molecular weight, or chemical properties, such as chemical formulae, all combinations and subcombinations of ranges and specific embodiments therein are intended to be included. The term “about” when referring to a number or a numerical range means that the number or numerical range referred to is an approximation within experimental variability (or within statistical experimental error), and thus the number or numerical range may vary from, for example, between 1% and 15% of the stated number or numerical range. The term “comprising” (and related terms such as “comprise” or “comprises” or “having” or “including”) includes those embodiments, for example, an embodiment of any composition of matter, composition, method, or process, or the like, that “consist of” or “consist essentially of” the described features.

The following abbreviations and terms have the indicated meanings throughout: AIDS=Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome; HIV=Human Immunodeficiency Virus; Abbreviations used herein have their conventional meaning within the chemical and biological arts.

The term “cell proliferation” refers to a phenomenon by which the cell number has changed as a result of division. This term also encompasses cell growth by which the cell morphology has changed (e.g., increased in size) consistent with a proliferative signal.

The term “co-administration,” “administered in combination with,” and their grammatical equivalents, as used herein, encompasses administration of two or more agents to an animal so that both agents and/or their metabolites are present in the animal at the same time. Co-administration includes simultaneous administration in separate compositions, administration at different times in separate compositions, or administration in a composition in which both agents are present.

The term “effective amount” or “therapeutically effective amount” refers to that amount of a compound described herein that is sufficient to effect the intended application including but not limited to disease treatment, as defined below. The therapeutically effective amount may vary depending upon the intended application (in vitro or in vivo), or the subject and disease condition being treated, e.g., the weight and age of the subject, the severity of the disease condition, the manner of administration and the like, which can readily be determined by one of ordinary skill in the art. The term also applies to a dose that will induce a particular response in target cells, e.g. reduction of platelet adhesion and/or cell migration. The specific dose will vary depending on the particular compounds chosen, the dosing regimen to be followed, whether it is administered in combination with other compounds, timing of administration, the tissue to which it is administered, and the physical delivery system in which it is carried. In one embodiment, the amount of compound administered ranges from about 0.1 mg to 5 g, from about 1 mg to 2.0 g, from about 100 mg to 1.5 g, from about 200 mg to 1.5 g, from about 400 mg to 1.5 g, and from about 400 mg to 1.0 g.

As used herein, “treatment,” “treating,” or “ameliorating” are used interchangeably. These terms refers to an approach for obtaining beneficial or desired results including but not limited to therapeutic benefit and/or a prophylactic benefit. By therapeutic benefit is meant eradication or amelioration of the underlying disorder being treated. Also, a therapeutic benefit is achieved with the eradication or amelioration of one or more of the physiological symptoms associated with the underlying disorder such that an improvement is observed in the patient, notwithstanding that the patient may still be afflicted with the underlying disorder. For prophylactic benefit, the compositions may be administered to a patient at risk of developing a particular disease, or to a patient reporting one or more of the physiological symptoms of a disease, even though a diagnosis of this disease may not have been made.

A “therapeutic effect,” as that term is used herein, encompasses a therapeutic benefit and/or a prophylactic benefit as described above. A prophylactic effect includes delaying or eliminating the appearance of a disease or condition, delaying or eliminating the onset of symptoms of a disease or condition, slowing, halting, or reversing the progression of a disease or condition, or any combination thereof.

The term “subject” or “patient” refers to an animal, such as a mammal, for example a human. The methods described herein can be useful in both human therapeutics and veterinary applications (e.g., dogs, cats, cows, sheep, pigs, horses, goats, chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese).

In some embodiments, the patient is a mammal, and in some embodiments, the patient is human.

“Radiation therapy” means exposing a patient, using routine methods and compositions known to the practitioner, to radiation emitters such as alpha-particle emitting radionuclides (e.g., actinium and thorium radionuclides), low linear energy transfer (LET) radiation emitters (i.e. beta emitters), conversion electron emitters (e.g. strontium-89 and samarium-153-EDTMP), or high-energy radiation, including without limitation x-rays, gamma rays, and neutrons.

The term “pharmaceutically acceptable excipient” includes, but is not limited to, any and all solvents, dispersion media, coatings, antibacterial and antifungal agents, isotonic and absorption delaying agents, one or more suitable diluents, fillers, salts, disintegrants, binders, lubricants, glidants, wetting agents, controlled release matrices, colorants/flavoring, carriers, buffers, stabilizers, solubilizers, and combinations thereof. Except insofar as any conventional media or agent is incompatible with the active ingredient, its use in the therapeutic compositions of the invention is contemplated. Supplementary active ingredients can also be incorporated into the compositions.

“Inflammatory response” as used herein is characterized by redness, heat, swelling and pain (i.e., inflammation) and typically involves tissue injury or destruction. An inflammatory response is usually a localized, protective response elicited by injury or destruction of tissues, which serves to destroy, dilute or wall off (sequester) both the injurious agent and the injured tissue. Inflammatory responses are notably associated with the influx of leukocytes and/or leukocyte (e.g., neutrophil) chemotaxis. Inflammatory responses may result from infection with pathogenic organisms and viruses, noninfectious means such as trauma or reperfusion following myocardial infarction or stroke, immune responses to foreign antigens, and autoimmune diseases. Inflammatory responses amenable to treatment with the methods and compounds according to the invention encompass conditions associated with reactions of the specific defence system as well as conditions associated with reactions of the non-specific defence system.

The therapeutic methods of the invention include methods for the amelioration of conditions associated with inflammatory cell activation. “Inflammatory cell activation” refers to the induction by a stimulus (including but not limited to, cytokines, antigens or auto-antibodies) of a proliferative cellular response, the production of soluble mediators (including but not limited to cytokines, oxygen radicals, enzymes, prostanoids, or vasoactive amines), or cell surface expression of new or increased numbers of mediators (including but not limited to, major histocompatibility antigens or cell adhesion molecules) in inflammatory cells (including but not limited to monocytes, macrophages, T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes, granulocytes (polymorphonuclear leukocytes including neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils) mast cells, dendritic cells, Langerhans cells, and endothelial cells). It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the activation of one or a combination of these phenotypes in these cells can contribute to the initiation, perpetuation, or exacerbation of an inflammatory condition.

“Autoimmune disease” as used herein refers to any group of disorders in which tissue injury is associated with humoral or cell-mediated responses to the body's own constituents. “Transplant rejection” (or “transplantation rejection”) as used herein refers to any immune response directed against grafted tissue (including organs or cells (e.g., bone marrow), characterized by a loss of function of the grafted and surrounding tissues, pain, swelling, leukocytosis, and thrombocytopenia). “Allergic disease” as used herein refers to any symptoms, tissue damage, or loss of tissue function resulting from allergy. “Arthritic disease” as used herein refers to any disease that is characterized by inflammatory lesions of the joints attributable to a variety of etiologies. “Dermatitis” as used herein refers to any of a large family of diseases of the skin that are characterized by inflammation of the skin attributable to a variety of etiologies.

The methods of the invention may be applied to cell populations in vivo or ex vivo. “In vivo” means within a living individual, as within an animal or human or in a subject's body. In this context, the methods of the invention may be used therapeutically or prophylactically in an individual. “Ex vivo” or “In vitro” means outside of a living individual. Examples of ex vivo cell populations include in vitro cell cultures and biological samples including but not limited to fluid or tissue samples obtained from individuals. Such samples may be obtained by methods known in the art. Exemplary biological fluid samples include blood, cerebrospinal fluid, urine, and saliva. Exemplary tissue samples include tumors and biopsies thereof. In this context, the invention may be used for a variety of purposes, including therapeutic and experimental purposes. For example, the invention may be used ex vivo or in vitro to determine the optimal schedule and/or dosing of administration of a glutaminase inhibitor for a given indication, cell type, individual, and other parameters. Information gleaned from such use may be used for experimental or diagnostic purposes or in the clinic to set protocols for in vivo treatment. Other ex vivo uses for which the invention may be suited are described below or will become apparent to those skilled in the art.

Pharmaceutical Compositions

The invention provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising one or more compounds of the present invention. The pharmaceutical composition may include one or more additional active ingredients as described herein. The pharmaceutical composition may be administered for any of the disorders described herein.

The subject pharmaceutical compositions are typically formulated to provide a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention as the active ingredient. Where desired, the pharmaceutical compositions contain a compound of the present invention as the active ingredient and one or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers or excipients, such as inert solid diluents and fillers, diluents, including sterile aqueous solution and various organic solvents, permeation enhancers, solubilizers and adjuvants.

The pharmaceutical compositions can be administered alone or in combination with one or more other agents, which are also typically administered in the form of pharmaceutical compositions. Where desired, the subject compounds and other agent(s) may be mixed into a preparation or both components may be formulated into separate preparations to use them in combination separately or at the same time.

Methods include administration of a compound of the present invention by itself, or in combination as described herein, and in each case optionally including one or more suitable diluents, fillers, salts, disintegrants, binders, lubricants, glidants, wetting agents, controlled release matrices, colorants/flavoring, carriers, excipients, buffers, stabilizers, solubilizers, and combinations thereof.

Preparations of various pharmaceutical compositions are known in the art. See, e.g., Anderson, Philip O.; Knoben, James E.; Troutman, William G, eds., Handbook of Clinical Drug Data, Tenth Edition, McGraw-Hill, 2002; Pratt and Taylor, eds., Principles of Drug Action, Third Edition, Churchill Livingston, N.Y., 1990; Katzung, ed., Basic and Clinical Pharmacology, Ninth Edition, McGraw Hill, 2003; Goodman and Gilman, eds., The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, Tenth Edition, McGraw Hill, 2001; Remingtons Pharmaceutical Sciences, 20th Ed., Lippincott Williams & Wilkins., 2000; Martindale, The Extra Pharmacopoeia, Thirty-Second Edition (The Pharmaceutical Press, London, 1999), all of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

The compounds or pharmaceutical composition of the present invention can be administered by any route that enables delivery of the compounds to the site of action, such as oral routes, intraduodenal routes, parenteral injection (including intravenous, intraarterial, subcutaneous, intramuscular, intravascular, intraperitoneal or infusion), topical administration (e.g. transdermal application), rectal administration, via local delivery by catheter or stent or through inhalation. The compounds can also be administered intraadiposally or intrathecally.

The compositions can be administered in solid, semi-solid, liquid or gaseous form, or may be in dried powder, such as lyophilized form. The pharmaceutical compositions can be packaged in forms convenient for delivery, including, for example, solid dosage forms such as capsules, sachets, cachets, gelatins, papers, tablets, capsules, suppositories, pellets, pills, troches, and lozenges. The type of packaging will generally depend on the desired route of administration. Implantable sustained release formulations are also contemplated, as are transdermal formulations.

Method of Treatment

The invention also provides methods of using the compounds or pharmaceutical compositions of the present invention to treat disease conditions, including, but not limited to, diseases associated with overexpression of glutaminase and/or due to an excess of glutamine.

The treatment methods provided herein comprise administering to the subject a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the invention. In one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of treating an inflammation disorder, including autoimmune diseases in a mammal. The method comprises administering to the mammal a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention.

It will be appreciated that the treatment methods of the invention are useful in the fields of human medicine and veterinary medicine. Thus, the individual to be treated may be a mammal, preferably human, or other animal. For veterinary purposes, individuals include but are not limited to farm animals including cows, sheep, pigs, horses, and goats; companion animals such as dogs and cats; exotic and/or zoo animals; laboratory animals including mice, rats, rabbits, guinea pigs, and hamsters; and poultry such as chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese.

In some embodiments, the method of treating inflammatory or autoimmune diseases comprises administering to a subject (e.g. a mammal) a therapeutically effective amount of one or more compounds of the present invention that inhibits glutaminase. Such inhibition of glutaminase may be advantageous for treating any of the diseases or conditions described herein. For example, inhibition of glutaminase may inhibit inflammatory responses associated with inflammatory diseases, autoimmune disease, or diseases related to an undesirable immune response including but not limited to asthma, emphysema, allergy, dermatitis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, lupus erythematosus, or graft versus host disease. Inhibition of glutaminase may further provide for a reduction in the inflammatory or undesirable immune response without a concomittant reduction in the ability to reduce a bacterial, viral, and/or fungal infection.

In other embodiments, the present invention provides methods of using the compounds or pharmaceutical compositions to treat respiratory diseases including but not limited to diseases affecting the lobes of lung, pleural cavity, bronchial tubes, trachea, upper respiratory tract, or the nerves and muscle for breathing. For example, methods are provided to treat obstructive pulmonary disease. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an umbrella term for a group of respiratory tract diseases that are characterized by airflow obstruction or limitation. Conditions included in this umbrella term include chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and bronchiectasis.

In another embodiment, the compounds described herein are used for the treatment of asthma. Also, the compounds or pharmaceutical compositions described herein may be used for the treatment of endotoxemia and sepsis. In one embodiment, the compounds or pharmaceutical compositions described herein are used to for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In yet another embodiment, the compounds or pharmaceutical compositions described herein is used for the treatment of contact or atopic dermatitis. Contact dermatitis includes irritant dermatitis, phototoxic dermatitis, allergic dermatitis, photoallergic dermatitis, contact urticaria, systemic contact-type dermatitis and the like. Irritant dermatitis can occur when too much of a substance is used on the skin of when the skin is sensitive to certain substance. Atopic dermatitis, sometimes called eczema, is a kind of dermatitis, an atopic skin disease.

The invention also relates to a method of treating a hyperproliferative disorder in a mammal that comprises administering to said mammal a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt, ester, prodrug, solvate, hydrate or derivative thereof. In some embodiments, said method relates to the treatment of cancer such as acute myeloid leukemia, thymus, brain, lung, squamous cell, skin, eye, retinoblastoma, intraocular melanoma, oral cavity and oropharyngeal, bladder, gastric, stomach, pancreatic, bladder, breast, cervical, head, neck, renal, kidney, liver, ovarian, prostate, colorectal, esophageal, testicular, gynecological, thyroid, CNS, PNS, AIDS-related (e.g. lymphoma and Kaposi's sarcoma) or viral-induced cancer. In some embodiments, said method relates to the treatment of a non-cancerous hyperproliferative disorder such as benign hyperplasia of the skin (e. g., psoriasis), restenosis, or prostate (e.g., benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH)).

The invention also relates to a method of treating diseases related to vasculogenesis or angiogenesis in a mammal that comprises administering to said mammal a therapeutically effective amount of a compound of the present invention. In some embodiments, said method is for treating a disease selected from the group consisting of tumor angiogenesis, chronic inflammatory disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, atherosclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease, skin diseases such as psoriasis, eczema, and scleroderma, diabetes, diabetic retinopathy, retinopathy of prematurity, age-related macular degeneration, hemangioma, glioma, melanoma, Kaposi's sarcoma and ovarian, breast, lung, pancreatic, prostate, colon and epidermoid cancer.

Patients that can be treated with compounds of the present invention according to the methods of this invention include, for example, patients that have been diagnosed as having psoriasis; restenosis; atherosclerosis; BPH; breast cancer such as a ductal carcinoma in duct tissue in a mammary gland, medullary carcinomas, colloid carcinomas, tubular carcinomas, and inflammatory breast cancer; ovarian cancer, including epithelial ovarian tumors such as adenocarcinoma in the ovary and an adenocarcinoma that has migrated from the ovary into the abdominal cavity; uterine cancer; cervical cancer such as adenocarcinoma in the cervix epithelial including squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinomas; prostate cancer, such as a prostate cancer selected from the following: an adenocarcinoma or an adenocarinoma that has migrated to the bone; pancreatic cancer such as epitheliod carcinoma in the pancreatic duct tissue and an adenocarcinoma in a pancreatic duct; bladder cancer such as a transitional cell carcinoma in urinary bladder, urothelial carcinomas (transitional cell carcinomas), tumors in the urothelial cells that line the bladder, squamous cell carcinomas, adenocarcinomas, and small cell cancers; leukemia such as acute myeloid leukemia (AML), acute lymphocytic leukemia, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, chronic myeloid leukemia, hairy cell leukemia, myelodysplasia, myeloproliferative disorders, acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), mastocytosis, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), multiple myeloma (MM), and myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS); bone cancer; lung cancer such as non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which is divided into squamous cell carcinomas, adenocarcinomas, and large cell undifferentiated carcinomas, and small cell lung cancer; skin cancer such as basal cell carcinoma, melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma and actinic keratosis, which is a skin condition that sometimes develops into squamous cell carcinoma; eye retinoblastoma; cutaneous or intraocular (eye) melanoma; primary liver cancer (cancer that begins in the liver); kidney cancer; thyroid cancer such as papillary, follicular, medullary and anaplastic; AIDS-related lymphoma such as diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, B-cell immunoblastic lymphoma and small non-cleaved cell lymphoma; Kaposi's Sarcoma; viral-induced cancers including hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and hepatocellular carcinoma; human lymphotropic virus-type 1 (HTLV-I) and adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma; and human papilloma virus (HPV) and cervical cancer; central nervous system cancers (CNS) such as primary brain tumor, which includes gliomas (astrocytoma, anaplastic astrocytoma, or glioblastoma multiforme), Oligodendroglioma, Ependymoma, Meningioma, Lymphoma, Schwannoma, and Medulloblastoma; peripheral nervous system (PNS) cancers such as acoustic neuromas and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST) including neurofibromas and schwannomas, malignant fibrous cytoma, malignant fibrous histiocytoma, malignant meningioma, malignant mesothelioma, and malignant mixed M{umlaut over (υ)}llerian tumor; oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer such as, hypopharyngeal cancer, laryngeal cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer, and oropharyngeal cancer; stomach cancer such as lymphomas, gastric stromal tumors, and carcinoid tumors; testicular cancer such as germ cell tumors (GCTs), which include seminomas and nonseminomas, and gonadal stromal tumors, which include Leydig cell tumors and Sertoli cell tumors; thymus cancer such as to thymomas, thymic carcinomas, Hodgkin disease, non-Hodgkin lymphomas carcinoids or carcinoid tumors; rectal cancer; and colon cancer.

In another aspect, the present invention provides methods of disrupting the function of a leukocyte or disrupting a function of an osteoclast. The method includes contacting the leukocyte or the osteoclast with a function disrupting amount of a compound of the invention.

In another aspect of the present invention, methods are provided for treating ophthalmic disease by administering one or more compounds or pharmaceutical compositions described herein to the eye of a subject.

The invention further provides methods of inhibiting glutaminase by contacting a glutaminase with an amount of a compound of the invention sufficient to inhibit the activity of the glutaminase enzyme. In some embodiments, the invention provides methods of inhibiting glutaminase enzyme activity by contacting a glutaminase enzyme with an amount of a compound of the invention sufficient to inhibit the activity of the glutaminase enzyme. In some embodiments, the invention provides methods of inhibiting glutaminase enzyme activity. Such inhibition can take place in solution, in a cell expressing one or more glutaminase enzyme, in a tissue comprising a cell expressing the glutaminase, or in an organism expressing glutaminase. In some embodiments, the invention provides methods of inhibiting glutaminase activity in an animal (including mammal such as humans) by contacting said animal with an amount of a compound of the invention sufficient to inhibit the activity of the glutaminase enzyme in said animal.

The following general methodology described herein provides the manner and process of making and using the compounds of the present invention and are illustrative rather than limiting. Further modification of provided methodology and additionally new methods may also be devised in order to achieve and serve the purpose of the invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that there may be other embodiments which fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the specification hereto.

Illustrative compounds of the present invention include those specified above in Table 1 and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof. The present invention should not be construed to be limited to only these compounds.

General Methods of Preparation

The compounds of the present invention may be prepared by the following processes. Unless otherwise indicated, the variables (e.g. R¹, R², P, Q, A, B and L) when used in the below formulae are to be understood to present those groups described above in relation to any of formulas (I), (II) and (III) defined above. These methods can similarly be applied to other compounds of formulas (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) and (IIIB) as provided herein above with or without modification

Scheme 1:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (I) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-, wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, L₁ and L₃ are absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x), A is

B is

r is 0 or 1, and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (I).

Step-1

Step-2

Step-1:

A compound of formula (12) can be coupled with a compound of formula (16) to form a compound of formula (17) under Sonogashira coupling reaction conditions in the presence of a palladium catalyst. The compound of formula (17) can be converted using zinc (Zn) and THF or using methods described in Knochel et al, Organozinc Reagents. A Practical Approach, Oxford University Press, 1999, to form a compound of formula (18).

Step-2:

The compound of formula (18) can be coupled with a compound of formula (9) to form a compound of formula (19). The compound of formula (19) can be converted to form a compound of formula (14), which can be coupled with a compound of formula (15) to form the compound of formula (I). This scheme is illustrated by the example below.

Illustration Step-1

Step-2

Scheme 2:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (I) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-, wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, L₁ and L₃ are absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x), B is

A is

r is 0 or 1, and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (I).

Step-1

Step-2

Step-1:

A compound of formula (15) can be converted to a compound of formula (6a), which can be coupled with a compound of formula (12a) to form a compound of formula (20) in the presence of N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP).

Step-2:

The compound of formula (20) can be converted to a compound of formula (21) wherein r is 1, 2, 3 or 4 by, for example, reaction with BrZn(CH₃)_(n)CN and NiCl₂. The compound of formula (21) can be reacted with a compound of formula (2) to form a compound of formula (22), which can be can be coupled with a compound of formula (7) to form the compound of formula (I). This scheme is illustrated by the example below.

Illustration Step-1

Step-2

Scheme 3:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (I) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or (CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-, wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, L₁ and L₃ are absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x), A is

B is

X is a leaving group such as bromine, r is 0 or 1, s is 0 or 1, and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (I).

Step-1

Step-2

Step-1:

The compound of formula (23) can be coupled with a compound of formula (8a) to form a compound of formula (9a), which can be coupled with a compound of formula (24), for example, in the presence of a suitable reagent such as a palladium catalyst to form a compound of formula (25).

Step-2:

The compound of formula (25) can be reduced to form a compound of formula (26). The compound of formula (26) can be reacted with a compound of formula (2) to form a compound of formula (14), which can be coupled with a compound of formula (27), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents such as HATU and N-ethyldiisopropyl amine to give the compound of formula (I). This scheme is illustrated by the example below.

Illustration Step-1

Step-2

Scheme 3a:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (I) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-, wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, L₁ and L₃ are absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x), A is

B is

r is 0 or 1, s is 0 or 1 and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (I).

The compound of formula (25) can be reacted with a compound of formula (2) to form a compound of formula (28), which can be coupled with a compound of formula (27), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents such as HATU and N-ethyldiisopropyl amine to form a compound of formula (29). The compound of formula (29) can be reduced to form the compound of formula (I), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents, such as Pd(OH)₂. This scheme is illustrated by the example below.

Illustration

Scheme 4:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (I) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-, wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl and L₁ and L₃ are absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x), A is

B is

X is a leaving group such as bromine, r is 0 or 1, s is 0 or 1 and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (I).

Step-1

Step-2

Step-1:

The compound of formula (8a) can be coupled with a compound of formula (24), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents such as CuI and a palladium catalyst to form a compound of formula (30). The compound of formula (30) can be reduced to form a compound of formula (31), which can be coupled with a compound of formula (23), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents, such as HATU and DIPEA, to form a compound of formula (26).

Step-2:

The compound of formula (I) can be prepared from a compound of formula (26) using the procedure described in Step-2 of Scheme 5 below. This scheme is illustrated by the example below.

Illustration Step-1

Step-2

Scheme 5:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (I) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-, wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl and L₁ and L₃ are absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x), A is

B is

r is 0 or 1, s is 0 or 1 and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (I), wherein A=B and R¹=R².

Step-1

Step-2

Step-1:

The compound of formula (23) can be coupled with a compound of formula (8a) to form a compound of formula (9a). The compound of formula (9a) can be coupled with a compound of formula (32), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents, such as CuI and a palladium catalyst, to form a compound of formula (33). The compound of formula (33) can subsequently be deprotected to form a compound of formula (34).

Step-2:

The compound of formula (34) can be treated with a suitable reagent, such as CuCl, to form a compound of formula (35), which can be reduced to form a compound of formula (I). This scheme is illustrated by the example below.

Illustration Step-1

Step-2

Using similar methodologies, with modifications as may be required known to a person of ordinary skill in the art, additional compounds of formulas (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID) and (IE) can be prepared.

Scheme 6:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (III) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃- wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₁₀ cycloalkyl and L₁ and L₃ are absent or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl (such as methylene), B is

A is

X is leaving group such as bromine, r is 0 or 1, s is 0 or 1 and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (III).

Step-1

Step-2

Step-1:

The compound of formula (1) can be coupled with a compound of formula (m), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents such as K₂CO₃, xantphos and a palladium catalyst to form a compound of formula (n). The compound of formula (n) can be coupled with a compound of formula (d), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents, such as HATU and DIPEA, to form a compound of formula (o), which can be reduced to form a compound of formula (i).

Step-2:

The desired compound of formula (III) can be prepared from a compound of formula (i) by using the procedure described in Scheme-2A. This scheme is illustrated by the example below.

Illustration Step-1

Step-2

Scheme 7:

This scheme provides a method for the preparation of a compound of formula (III) wherein R¹ and R² are independently substituted or unsubstituted aryl or substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, P and Q are independently —NR^(x)C(O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, or —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—CO—NR^(x)—, L is -L₁-L₂-L₃- wherein L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₁₀ cycloalkyl and L₁ and L₃ are absent or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl (such as methylene), B is

A is

X is leaving group such as bromine, Pg is a protecting group, r is 0 or 1, s is 0 or 1 and all the other variables (including R^(x) and R^(y)) are as described above in relation to formula (III).

Step-1

Step-2

Step-1:

The compound formula (p1) wherein Pg is a protecting group such as benzyl can be reacted with CBr₄ to form a compound of formula (p). The compound of formula (p) can be coupled with a compound of formula (t), for example, in the presence of NiCl₂ and diethylzinc (DEZn), to form a compound of formula (q). The compound of formula (q) can be coupled with a compound of formula (d), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents, such as HATU and DIPEA, to form a compound of formula (r), which can be deprotected to form a compound of formula (s).

Step-2:

The compound of formula (s) can be reacted with a compound of formula (b) in the presence of POCl₃ to form a compound of formula (j), which can be coupled with a compound of formula (k), for example, in the presence of suitable reagents, such as HATU and N-ethyldiisopropyl amine, to form a compound of formula (III).

Illustration Step-1

Step-2

Using similar methodologies with or without minor modifications, a compound of formula (III) wherein A and B are independently selected from

and L is

can be prepared. For example, the compound shown below can be synthesized by the process provided in Scheme 7 with modifications known to one of ordinary skill.

Similar methodologies, with appropriate modifications known to those skilled in the art, can be used to synthesize compounds of formulas (I), (IA), (IB), (IC), (ID), (IE), (II), (III), (IIIA) and (IIIB), wherein all the variable represent those groups described above using suitable intermediates and reagents.

EXPERIMENTAL

The examples and preparations provided below further illustrate and exemplify the compounds of the present invention and methods of preparing such compounds. It is to be understood that the scope of the present invention is not limited in any way by the scope of the following examples and preparations. In the following examples molecules with a single chiral center, unless otherwise noted, exist as a racemic mixture. Those molecules with two or more chiral centers, unless otherwise noted, exist as a racemic mixture of diastereomers. Single enantiomers/diastereomers may be obtained by methods known to those skilled in the art.

TABLE OF INTERMEDIATES No. Structure  1

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101

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111

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119

Intermediate 1: N-(5-Bromopyridin-2-yl)-2-(2-chlorophenyl)acetamide

2-Amino-5-bromopyridine (1 g, 5.78 mmol), 2-Chlorophenylacetic acid (1.97 g, 11.6 mmol), HATU (5.27 g, 2.5 mmol), DIPEA (3.02 ml, 17.3 mmol) were taken in DMF. This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:9) as eluent to afford the titled compound (1.5 g).

Intermediate 2: 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-[5-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)pyridin-2-yl]acetamide

Intermediate 1 (500 mg, 1.53 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (970 mg, 12.3 mmol), CuI (30 mg, 0.15 mmol), diisopropyl amine (990 mg, 7.7 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (180 mg, 0.16 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 15 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and DCM (1:9) as eluent to afford the titled compound (120 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.90 (s, 1H), 8.36 (s, 1H), 8.02 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.78 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.46-7.36 (m, 2H), 7.32-7.26 (m, 2H), 3.92 (s, 2H), 2.78 (s, 4H). MS (m/z): 323.8 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 3: N-{5-[4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)but-1-ynyl]pyridin-2-yl}-2-(2-chlorophenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 2 (120 mg, 0.37 mmol) and Thiosemicarbazide (50 mg, 0.55 mmol) were dissolved in trifluoroacetic acid (2 ml). This mixture was heated to 100° C. for 4 h. Reaction mixture was cooled and basified with aq. NaOH to pH 14 to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and dried on high vacuum to afford the titled compound (130 mg) as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.87 (s, 1H), 8.33 (s, 1H), 8.01 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.75 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 7.48-7.35 (m, 2H), 7.33-7.25 (m, 2H), 7.01 (s, 2H), 3.92 (s, 2H), 3.07-3.05 (m, 2H), 2.81-2.75 (m, 2H).

Intermediate 4: N-(5-Bromopyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

2-Amino-5-bromopyridine (1 g, 5.78 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (1.52 g, 6.9 mmol), HATU (4.83 g, 2.2 mmol), DIPEA (3.02 ml, 17.3 mmol) were taken in DMF. This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:9) as eluent to afford the titled compound (0.4 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.92 (s, 1H), 8.43 (d, J 1.8, 1H), 8.05-7.94 (m, 2H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 3.79 (s, 2H).

Intermediate 5: N-(5-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl) acetamide

Intermediate 4 (500 mg, 1.33 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (840 mg, 16 mmol), CuI (25 mg, 0.15 mmol), diisopropyl amine (900 mg, 6.6 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (154 mg, 0.16 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 15 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by column on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (3:7) as eluent to afford the titled compound (265 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.91 (s, 1H), 8.36 (d, J 1.6, 1H), 8.04 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.79 (dd, J 2.1, 8.7, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 3.80 (s, 2H), 2.79 (s, 4H). MS (m/z): 373.7 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 6: N-{5-[4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)but-1-ynyl]pyridin-2-yl}-2-[3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl]acetamide

Intermediate 5 (250 mg, 0.67 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (67 mg, 0.74 mmol) were dissolved in trifluoroacetic acid (5 ml). This mixture was heated to 100° C. for 4 h. Reaction mass was cooled and basified with aq. NaOH to pH 14. Aqueous layer extracted with EtOAc and dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain a crude solid. Solid was triturated with petether and diethyl ether to obtain titled compound (230 mg) as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.88 (s, 1H), 8.33 (d, J 1.8, 1H), 8.03-7.99 (m, 1H), 7.75 (dd, J 2.2, 8.6, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.01 (s, 2H), 3.80 (s, 2H), 3.06 (t, J 7.1, 2H), 2.78 (t, J 7.1, 2H).

Intermediate 7: 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido) pyridin-3-yl)but-3-ynyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 6 (215 mg, 0.48 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (100 mg, 0.57 mmol), HATU (420 mg, 1.1 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.24 ml, 1.3 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (3:97) as eluent to afford the titled compound (65 mg) as an off-white solid. MS (m/z): 566.7 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 8: N-(6-bromopyridin-3-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

3-Amino-6-bromopyridine (1.96 g, 11.3 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (3 g, 13.62 mmol), HATU (349 mg, 25 mmol), DIPEA (5.9 ml, 34 mmol) were taken in DMF. This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (3.7 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.54 (s, 1H), 8.57 (d, J 2.6, 1H), 7.97 (dd, J 2.7, 8.6, 1H), 7.57 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.49-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.25 (d, J 8, 1H), 3.76 (s, 2H). MS (m/z): 376.14 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 9: N-(6-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)pyridin-3-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamide

Intermediate 8 (3.7 g, 9.86 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (858 mg, 10.8 mmol), CuI (187 mg, 1 mmol), diisopropyl amine (4.98 g, 49.3 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (1.13 g, 1 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by column on 60-120 mesh silica gel using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (265 mg) as a brown solid. MS (m/z): 373.7 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 10: N-(6-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)but-1-ynyl)pyridin-3-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 9 (2.7 g, 7.2 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (2.7 g, 29.6 mmol) were dissolved in trifluoroacetic acid (20 ml). This mixture was heated to 100° C. for 4 h. Reaction mass was cooled and basified with aq. NaOH to pH 14. Aqueous layer extracted with EtOAc and dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using DCM and MeOH (95:5) as eluent to afford the titled compound (870 mg) as a pale-brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.63 (s, 1H), 8.68 (d, J 2.2, 1H), 8.02 (dd, J 2.2, 8.5, 1H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.40-7.32 (m, 3H), 7.24 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.02 (s, 2H), 3.77 (s, 2H), 3.06 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.79 (t, J 7, 2H). MS (m/z): 448.5 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 11: N-(6-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-3-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 10 (860 mg, 1.92 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAC (40 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (860 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (6 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 30 mins. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with Et₂O to obtain the titled compound as a black solid. MS (m/z): 452.7 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 12: 5-(5-Aminopyrazin-2-yl)pent-4-ynenitrile

5-Bromopyrazin-2-amine (700 mg, 4.02 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (350 mg, 4.4 mmol), CuI (76 mg, 0.4 mmol), diisopropyl amine (2.035 g, 20.1 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (464 mg, 0.4 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (98:2) as eluent to afford the titled compound (700 mg) as a yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 7.96 (s, 1H), 7.80 (s, 1H), 6.75 (s, 2H), 2.76 (s, 4H).

Intermediate 13: 5-(5-Aminopyrazin-2-yl)pentanenitrile

Intermediate 12 (700 mg, 4.06 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (40 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (700 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (6 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 4 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with Et₂O (5 ml) to obtain the titled compound (440 mg) as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 7.79 (s, 1H), 7.75 (s, 1H), 6.10 (s, 2H), 2.58-2.45 (m, 4H), 1.70-1.61 (m, 2H), 1.58-1.48 (m, 2H).

Intermediate 14: N-(5-(4-Cyanobutyl)pyrazin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamide

Intermediate 13 (440 mg, 2.5 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (660 mg, 2.99 mmol), HATU (2.1 g, 5.5 mmol), DIPEA (1.29 ml, 7.5 mmol) were taken in DMF (5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (1:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (440 mg) as a pale-brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.94 (s, 1H), 9.18 (s, 1H), 8.29 (s, 1H), 7.49-7.46 (m, 1H), 7.39-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 3.82 (s, 2H), 2.79-2.71 (m, 2H), 2.53-2.45 (m, 2H), 1.79-1.70 (m, 2H), 1.60-1.52 (m, 2H). MS (m/z): 379.3 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 15: N-(5-(4-(5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyrazin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 14 (330 mg, 0.73 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (330 mg, 3.6 mmol) were dissolved in trifluoroacetic acid (6 ml). This mixture was heated to 100° C. for 1 h. Reaction mass was cooled and basified with aq. NaOH to pH 14 to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and washed with water. Solid was dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound (520 mg) as a pale-brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.92 (s, 1H), 9.17 (s, 1H), 8.27 (s, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 7.1, 1H), 6.94 (s, 2H), 3.82 (s, 2H), 2.80 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.74 (t, J 7, 2H), 1.75-1.59 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 16: N-(5-Bromopyrimidin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

2-Amino-5-bromopyrimidine (1 g, 5.74 mmol) and 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (1.51 g, 6.85 mmol) and DCC (1.8 g, 8.72 mmol) were dissolved in a mixture of 1,4-Dioxane (5 ml) and DMF (5 ml). This mixture was stirred for 16 h under N₂ atmosphere. After completion of reaction, reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was washed with water and EtOAc layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combiflash using EtOAc and Petether (14:86) as eluent to afford the titled compound (600 mg) as a white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.98 (s, 1H), 8.79 (s, 2H), 7.44 (t, J 7.9, 1H), 7.35-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 3.86 (s, 2H).

Intermediate 17: N-(5-(4-Cyanobut-1-ynyl)pyrimidin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 16 (670 mg, 1.78 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (170 mg, 2.14 mmol), CuI (34 mg, 0.18 mmol), diisopropyl amine (900 mg, 8.9 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (200 mg, 0.18 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (1:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (550 mg) as a yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 11.00 (s, 1H), 8.69 (s, 2H), 7.50-7.40 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 3.88 (s, 2H), 2.85-2.80 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 18: N-(5-(4-Cyanobutyl)pyrimidin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl) acetamide

Intermediate 17 (580 mg, 1.5 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (30 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (580 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (6 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 4 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by Combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (1:1) as eluent to afford the titled compound (170 mg) as a brown solid.

Intermediate 19: N-(5-(4-(5-Amino-1, 3, 4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyrimidin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 18 (170 mg, 0.45 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (62 mg, 0.68 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (2 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14. Aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried over anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (5:95) as eluent to afford the titled compound (130 mg) as an off-white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.7 (s, 1H), 8.50 (s, 2H), 7.44 (t, J 7.8, 1H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8, 1H), 6.94 (s, 2H), 3.85 (s, 2H), 2.79 (t, J 6.8, 2H), 2.54 (t, J 6.8, 2H), 1.66-1.60 (bs, 4H).

Intermediate 20: N-(5-bromopyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

2-Amino-5-bromopyridine (1.0 g, 5.8 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (1.2 g, 6.94 mmol), HATU (4.83 g, 12.71 mmol), DIPEA (3 ml, 17.34 mmol) were taken in DMF. This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:4) as eluent to afford the titled compound (1.25 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.84 (s, 1H), 8.49 (d, J 4.6, 1H), 8.43 (d, J 2.2, 1H), 8.04 (d, J 9, 1H), 7.97 (dd, J 9, 2.2, 1H), 7.77-7.71 (m, 1H), 7.37 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.29-7.23 (m, 1H), 3.93 (s, 2H). MS (m/z): 293.5 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 21: N-(5-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 20 (0.5 g, 1.71 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (135 mg, 1.71 mmol), CuI (33 mg, 0.17 mmol), diisopropyl amine (1.22 ml, 8.55 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (197 mg, 0.171 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by column on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (85:15) as eluent to afford the titled compound (300 mg) as an Off-White solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.84 (s, 1H), 8.50-8.48 (m, 1H), 8.35 (s, 1H), 8.05 (d, J 8.7, 1H), 7.82-7.72 (m, 2H), 7.38 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.28-7.23 (m, 1H), 3.93 (s, 2H), 2.79 (s, 4H). MS (m/z): 291.6 [M+H].

Intermediate 22: N-(5-(4-cyanobutyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 21 (280 mg, 1 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (12 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (280 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by Combi-flash using DCM and Methanol (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (170 mg) as a yellow semi-solid.

Intermediate 23: N-(5-(4-(5-amino-1, 3, 4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 22 (160 mg, 0.54 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (160 mg) and trifluoroacetic acid (1 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14. Aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried over anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude (56 mg) was used in the next step without further purification. MS (m/z): 369.6 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 24: N-(5-bromo-6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl) acetamide

5-Bromo-6-methylpyridin-2-amine (1 g, 5.3 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (1.4 g, 6.4 mmol), HATU (2.4 g, 6.41 mmol), DIPEA (2.8 ml, 18 mmol) were taken in DMF (6 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:1) as eluent to afford the titled compound (2.1 g) as a brown solid.

Intermediate 25: N-(5-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)-6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 24 (0.5 g, 1.28 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (100 mg, 1.28 mmol), CuI (24 mg, 0.126 mmol), diisopropyl amine (0.9 ml, 25.7 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (148 mg, 0.128 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:1) as eluent to afford the titled compound (410 mg) as a brown solid.

Intermediate 26: N-(5-(4-cyanobutyl)-6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 25 (410 mg, 1 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (25 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (410 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by Combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (8:92) as eluent to afford the titled compound (230 mg) as a yellow semi-solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.54 (s, 1H), 7.78 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.50-7.41 (m, 2H), 7.37-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.22 (d, J 8, 1H), 3.75 (s, 2H), 2.60-2.40 (m, 4H), 2.39 (s, 3H), 1.70-1.55 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 392.3 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 27: N-(5-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)-6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 26 (220 mg, 0.56 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (220 mg) and trifluoroacetic acid (2.5 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14. Aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried over anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using DCM and Methanol (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.53 (s, 1H), 7.77 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.49-7.41 (m, 2H), 7.38-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.22 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 6.90 (bs, 2H), 3.75 (s, 2H), 2.81 (t, J 7.2, 2H), 2.55 (t, J 7.6, 2H), 2.39 (s, 3H), 1.70-1.50 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 28: N-(5-(4-cyanobutyl)pyridine-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 5 (2.5 g, 6.7 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (30 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (2.5 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude as a brown solid. Crude (750 mg) was used in the next step without further purification. MS (m/z): 378.4 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 29: N-(5-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridine-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 28 (710 mg, 1.88 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (710 mg) and trifluoroacetic acid (6 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14. Aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried over anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using DCM and Methanol (96:4) as eluent to afford the titled compound as a pale-yellow solid. MS (m/z): 452.4 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 30: N-(5-Bromopyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridine-3-yl)acetamide

5-Bromopyridin-2-amine (1 g, 5.8 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (1.2 g, 6.9 mmol), HATU (2.7 g, 7.1 mmol), DIPEA (3 ml, 18 mmol) were taken in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and filtered the solid that formed. Solid was washed with water and dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound as a pale-yellow solid (1.1 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.89 (s, 1H), 8.55-8.40 (m, 3H), 8.03-7.93 (m, 2H), 7.72 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 1H), 3.77 (s, 2H).

Intermediate 31: N-(5-(4-Cyanobut-1-ynyl)pyridine-2-yl)-2-(pyridine-3-yl) acetamide

Intermediate 30 (1.1 g, 3.8 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (360 mg, 4.55 mmol), CuI (72 mg, 0.38 mmol), diisopropyl amine (2.7 ml, 18.9 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (430 mg, 0.38 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using DCM and Methanol (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (870 mg) as a pale-yellow solid.

Intermediate 32: N-(5-(4-Cyanobutyl)pyridine-2-yl)-2-(pyridine-3-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 31 (870 mg, 3 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (25 ml) and MeOH (10 ml) mixture. To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (500 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with MeOH and DCM (2:8) mixture (200 ml). Combined organic layers were distilled on rotavapour to obtain the titled compound (840 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.64 (s, 1H), 8.51 (s, 1H), 8.45 (d, J 3.9, 1H), 8.16 (d, J 1.8, 1H), 7.94 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.60 (dd, J 8.5, 2.1, 1H), 7.37-7.32 (m, 1H), 3.75 (s, 2H), 2.50-2.45 (m, 4H), 1.70-1.50 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 33: N-(5-(4-(5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridine-2-yl)-2-(pyridine-3-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 32 (840 mg, 2.85 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (390 mg, 4.3 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (3 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 to obtain a solid. Solid was washed with water and dried on high vacuum. Solid was triturated with Et2O to obtain the titled compound (720 mg) as an off-white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.63 (s, 1H), 8.51 (s, 1H), 8.44 (d, J 3.8, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.5, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 1H), 6.90 (bs, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 2.86-2.78 (m, 2H), 2.61-2.53 (m, 2H), 1.68-1.55 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 34: N-(5-bromo-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl) acetamide

5-bromo-6-fluoropyridin-2-amine (900 mg, 4.7 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (1.55 g, 7.1 mmol), HATU (3.94 g, 10.36 mmol), DIPEA (2.5 ml, 14.1 mmol) were taken in DMF (5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:1) as eluent to afford the titled compound (750 mg). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 11.04 (s, 1H), 8.19 (t, J 8.8, 1H), 7.91 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 9, 1H), 3.79 (s, 2H).

Intermediate 35: N-(5-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 34 (740 mg, 1.9 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (178 mg, 2.23 mmol), CuI (35 mg, 0.188 mmol), diisopropyl amine (1.4 ml, 9.4 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (217 mg, 0.19 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (14:86) as eluent to afford the titled compound (440 mg) as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 11.04 (s, 1H), 8.00-7.92 (m, 2H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 3.80 (s, 2H), 2.85-2.77 (m, 4H)

Intermediate 36: N-(5-(4-cyanobutyl)-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 35 (420 mg, 1 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (35 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (400 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (3:97) as eluent to afford the titled compound (230 mg) as a yellow semi-solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.82 (s, 1H), 7.87 (d, J 8, 2H), 7.82-7.76 (m, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.31 (m, 1H), 7.23 (d, J 8, 1H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.60-2.55 (m, 4H), 1.65-1.55 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 37: N-(5-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 36 (241 mg, 0.6 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (110 mg) and trifluoroacetic acid (2.5 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14. Aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried over anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using DCM and Methanol (94:6) as eluent to afford the titled compound as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.81 (s, 1H), 7.86 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.81-7.74 (m, 1H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8, 1H), 6.93 (bs, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.79 (t, J 6.3, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 6.7, 2H), 1.65-1.55 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 38: N-(5-bromopyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-4-yl)acetamide

5-Bromopyridin-2-amine (500 mg, 2.9 mmol), 4-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (600 g, 3.5 mmol), HATU (1.3 g, 3.42 mmol), DIPEA (1.5 ml, 9 mmol) were taken in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 48 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and filtered the solid that formed. Solid was washed with water and dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound as an Off-white solid (420 mg). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.94 (s, 1H), 8.49 (bs, 2H), 8.43 (s, 1H), 8.05-7.95 (m, 2H), 7.33 (d, J 4.2, 2H), 3.78 (s, 2H).

Intermediate 39: N-(5-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-4-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 38 (420 mg, 1.4 mmol), 4-Pentynenitrile (136 mg, 1.7 mmol), CuI (28 mg, 0.15 mmol), diisopropyl amine (1 ml, 7.1 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (170 mg, 0.15 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using DCM and Methanol (96:4) as eluent to afford the titled compound (340 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.92 (s, 1H), 8.7 (bs, 2H), 8.36 (s, 1H), 8.03 (d, J 8.7, 1H), 7.78 (dd, J 2, 8.7, 1H), 7.38 (bs, 2H), 3.77 (s, 2H), 2.79 (s, 4H).

Intermediate 40: N-(5-(4-cyanobutyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-4-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 39 (330 mg, 1.12 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (10 ml) and MeOH (4 ml) mixture. To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (200 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with MeOH and DCM (2:8) mixture (200 ml). Combined organic layers were distilled on rotavapour to obtain the titled compound (840 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.65 (s, 1H), 8.49 (d, J 5.5, 2H), 8.16 (d, J 1.7, 1H), 7.95 (d, J 8.7, 1H), 7.60 (dd, J 2.2, 8.6, 1H), 7.33 (d, J 5.8, 2H), 3.75 (s, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.2, 2H), 2.51-2.47 (m, 2H), 1.70-1.50 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 41: N-(5-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-4-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 40 (310 mg, 1.05 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (143 mg, 1.6 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (3 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 to obtain a solid. Solid was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using DCM and MeOH (9:1) as eluent to afford the titled compound as a pale yellow solid (60 mg). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.64 (s, 1H), 8.49 (d, J 5.4, 2H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8, 1H), 7.59 (d, J 6.5, 1H), 7.33 (d, J 5.3, 2H), 6.89 (s, 2H), 3.75 (s, 2H), 2.85-2.76 (m, 2H), 2.61-2.53 (m, 2H), 1.65-1.55 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 42: 5-(6-Aminopyridin-3-yl)pent-4-ynenitrile

2-Amino-5-bromopyridine (2 g, 11.56 mmol), 4-Pentynenitrile (1.21 ml, 13.87 mmol), CuI (220 mg, 1.15 mmol), diisopropyl amine (8.23 ml, 57.8 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (1.33 mg, 1.15 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using EA and Petether (7:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (830 mg) as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 7.95 (s, 1H), 7.35 (dd, J 1.9, 8.5, 1H), 6.39 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 6.22 (s, 2H), 2.75-2.70 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 43: 5-(6-aminopyridin-3-yl)pentanenitrile

Intermediate 42 (750 mg, 4.4 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (20 ml) and MeOH (5 ml) mixture. To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (300 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with MeOH and DCM (2:8) mixture (200 ml). Combined organic layers were distilled on rotavapour to obtain the titled compound (500 mg) as a brown solid.

Intermediate 44: 2-(2-chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-cyanobutyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 43 (450 mg, 2.56 mmol), 2-Chlorophenylacetic acid (525 mg, 3.08 mmol), HATU (2.14 g, 5.64 mmol), DIPEA (1.3 ml, 7.7 mmol) were taken in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 48 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc was removed on rovavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (1:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (730 mg) as a brown solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.57 (s, 1H), 8.16 (d, J 1.5, 1H), 7.94 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.60 (dd, J 2, 8.5, 1H), 7.45-7.38 (m, 2H), 7.31-7.25 (m, 2H), 3.89 (s, 2H), 2.60-2.55 (m, 2H), 2.54-2.48 (m, 2H), 1.69-1.51 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 45: N-(5-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(2-chlorophenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 44 (720 mg, 2.19 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (400 mg, 4.39 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (7 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 to obtain a solid. Solid was triturated with Et₂O to obtain the titled compound (410 mg) as an off-white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.55 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.45-7.37 (m, 2H), 7.32-7.24 (m, 2H), 6.89 (s, 2H), 3.89 (s, 2H), 2.85-2.75 (m, 2H), 2.60-2.53 (m, 2H), 1.65-1.55 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 46: N-(5-bromo-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

5-Bromo-6-fluoropyridin-2-amine (1.14 g, 6 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (1.24 g, 7.16 mmol), HATU (4.98 g, 13.11 mmol), DIPEA (3 ml, 18 mmol) were taken in DMF (5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 48 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and filtered the solid that formed. Solid was washed with water and dried on high vacuum. Dried solid was washed with Et₂O (2*10 ml) to obtain the tiled compound as a yellow solid (1.3 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 11.08 (s, 1H), 8.52 (d, J 4.4, 1H), 8.20 (t, J 8.8, 1H), 7.92 (d, J 8.8, 1H), 7.81 (t, J 7.3, 1H), 7.42 (d, J 7.6, 1H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 1H), 3.95 (s, 2H).

Intermediate 47: N-(5-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl) acetamide

Intermediate 46 (1.3 g, 3.74 mmol), 4-Pentynenitrile (355 mg, 4.5 mmol), CuI (71 mg, 0.374 mmol), diisopropyl amine (2.55 ml, 18.7 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (432 mg, 0.374 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using DCM and Methanol (92:8) as eluent to afford the titled compound (950 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 11.07 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4.2, 1H), 8.00-7.96 (m, 2H), 7.74 (t, J 7.6, 1H), 7.37 (d, J 7.6, 1H), 7.28-7.23 (m, 1H), 3.93 (s, 2H), 2.82 (s, 4H). MS (m/z): 309.0 [M+H].

Intermediate 48: N-(5-(4-cyanobutyl)-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 47 (950 mg, 2.75 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (20 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (400 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with MeOH and DCM (2:8) mixture (200 ml). Combined filtrates were distilled on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (740 mg) as a black solid. MS (m/z): 347.78 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 49: N-(5-(4-(5-amino-1, 3, 4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)-6-fluoropyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 48 (740 mg, 2.12 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (386 mg, 4.24 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (5 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 4 h. After 4 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and purified on combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (95:5) as eluent to afford the titled compound (220 mg) as an off-white solid.

Intermediate 50: 2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)-N-(5-((trimethylsilyl)ethynyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 4 (2 g, 5.33 mmol), Trimethylsilylacetylene (780 mg, 7.94 mmol), CuI (100 mg, 0.53 mmol), diisopropyl amine (3.8 ml, 26.7 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (610 mg, 0.53 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was refluxed for 1 h. Reaction mass was filtered thru cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was evaporated to afford crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (4:96) as eluent to afford the titled compound (1.6 g) as a white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.95 (s, 1H), 8.41 (s, 1H), 8.03 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.83 (dd, J 8.6, 1.7, 1H), 7.48-7.43 (m, 3H), 7.23 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 3.80 (s, 2H), 0.22 (s, 9H).

Intermediate 51: N-(5-ethynylpyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 50 (1.6 g, 4.07 mmol) was dissolved in MeOH (30 ml) and THF (30 ml). To the above mixture K₂CO₃ (5.6 g, 40.5 mmol) was added. This mixture was stirred at rt for 1 h. Water was added to the reaction mixture and extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (1:9) as eluent to afford the titled compound as an Off-White solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.94 (s, 1H), 8.43 (d, J 1.8, 1H), 8.04 (d, J 8.7, 1H), 7.85 (dd, J 8.7, 2.3, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8, 1H), 4.29 (s, 1H), 3.81 (s, 2H). MS (m/z): 321.3 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 52: N,N′-(5,5′-(buta-1,3-diyne-1,4-diyl)bis(pyridine-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide)

Intermediate 51 (880 mg, 2.74 mmol) and CuCl (49 mg, 0.49 mmol) were dissolved in Pyridine (10 ml). This mixture was stirred under air bubbling for 8 h at rt. Reaction mass was quenched with aq. NH₄Cl and extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was washed with water and dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (22:78) as eluent to afford the titled compound (310 mg) as a white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 11.04 (s, 2H), 8.57 (d, J 1.6, 2H), 8.09 (d, J 8.7, 2H), 7.98 (dd, J 8.7, 2, 2H), 7.49-7.42 (m, 2H), 7.35 (d, J 8.2, 4H), 7.24 (d, J 8, 2H), 3.83 (s, 4H). MS (m/z): 639.8 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 53: N-(4-bromo-2-fluorophenyl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

4-Bromo-2-fluoroaniline (1 g, 5.3 mmol), 3-Trifluoromethoxyphenylacetic acid (1.39 g, 6.3 mmol), HATU (2.4 g, 6.3 mmol), DIPEA (2 g, 15.5 mmol) were taken in DMF (5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 48 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and filtered the solid that formed. Solid was washed with water and triturated with petether. Solid dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound as an Off-white solid (1.8 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.06 (s, 1H), 7.86-7.82 (m, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 2, 10.5, 1H), 7.48-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.23 (d, J 8, 1H), 3.80 (s, 2H).

Intermediate 54: N-(4-(4-cyanobut-1-ynyl)-2-fluorophenyl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 53 (800 mg, 2.0 mmol), 4-Pentyne nitrile (0.22 ml, 2.52 mmol), CuI (39 mg, 0.20 mmol), diisopropyl amine (1.45 ml, 10.18 mmol) were dissolved in THF. This mixture was degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Pd(PPh₃)₄ (230 mg, 0.2 mmol) was added to the above mixture and again degassed with nitrogen for 15 mins. Reaction mixture was cooled to rt and added water. Above aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (2:8) as eluent to afford the titled compound (430 mg) as a yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.08 (s, 1H), 7.93 (t, J 8.4, 1H), 7.49-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.28-7.15 (m, 3H), 3.81 (s, 2H), 2.77 (s, 4H).

Intermediate 55: N-(4-(4-cyanobutyl)-2-fluorophenyl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 54 (430 mg, 1.10 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (20 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (430 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 8 h. Reaction mixture was filtered thru cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. Combined EtOAc layers were distilled on rotavapour to obtain the titled compound (370 mg) as a yellow solid.

Intermediate 56: N-(4-(4-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)-2-fluorophenyl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 55 (370 mg, 0.94 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (130 mg, 1.43 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (2 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 3 h. After 3 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 to obtain a solid. Filtered the solid and dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound (370 mg) as a white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 9.84 (s, 1H), 7.67 (t, J 8.5, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 7.07 (d, J 11.9, 1H), 6.95 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 6.90 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.82-2.75 (m, 2H), 2.60-2.55 (m, 2H), 1.65-1.55 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 101: 5,5′-(Cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)bis(1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-amine)

Cyclohexane-1,4-dicarboxylic acid (3 g, 17.42 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (3.2 g, 35.12 mmol) and POCl₃ were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 16 h. After completion of reaction, reaction mass was cooled to rt and quenched into crushed ice (150 g). The resulting mixture was filtered and filtrate was basified to pH 14 with saturated aq. NaOH to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound as a white solid (3 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 6.97 (bs, 4H), 3.10 (bs, 2H), 1.92-1.80 (m, 8H). MS (m/z): 282.8 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 102: 1,4-bis(bromomethyl)cyclohexane

Cyclohexane-1,4-diyldimethanol (5 g, 34.6 mmol), Phosphorus tribromide (6.5 ml, 69.3 mmol) were taken in dioxane (50 ml) and heated to 80° C. for 4 hrs. Reaction mass was quenched into crushed ice and extracted the aqueous layer with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column on 60-120 mesh silica gel using Petether as eluent to obtain the titled compound as semisolid (4.5 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 3.51-3.40 (m, 4H), 1.90-1.72 (m, 4H), 1.59-1.40 (m, 3H), 1.10-0.9 (m, 3H).

Intermediate 103: 2,2′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)diacetonitrile

Intermediate 102 (4 g, 14.81 mmol) was dissolved in DMSO (10 ml) and added sodium iodide (2.2 g, 14.81 mmol). To the above mixture added sodium cyanide (1.45 g, 29.59 mmol) and heated to 100° C. for 3 h. Reaction mixture cooled to rt and diluted with water. Aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. Ethyl acetate layer was washed with water and dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain the crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (2:8) as eluent to afford the titled compound as a pale yellow solid (1.7 g). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 2.51-2.40 (m, 4H), 1.85-1.70 (m, 4H), 1.60-1.49 (m, 3H), 1.11-0.99 (m, 3H).

Intermediate 104: 5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-amine)

Intermediate 103 (1.6 g, 9.9 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (1.97 g, 21.7 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (17.4 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 using aq. NaOH to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound as an off-white solid (2.7 g).

Intermediate 105: 2-(4-((5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)methyl)cyclohexyl)acetonitrile

Intermediate 103 (500 mg, 3.08 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (280 mg, 3.08 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (17.4 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 using aq. NaOH to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound as an off-white solid (630 mg). MS (m/z): 237.5 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 106: N-(5-((4-(Cyanomethyl)cyclohexyl)methyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 105 (630 mg, 2.6 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (580 mg, 2.6 mmol), HATU (1.21 g, 3.2 mmol), DIPEA (1.03 g, 8 mmol) were taken in DMF (4 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using DCM and MeOH (98:2) as eluent to afford the titled compound (210 mg) as a white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.64 (s, 1H), 7.46 (t, J 8, 1H), 7.37-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.26 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 2.95 (d, J 7, 0.18H), 2.85 (d, J 7, 1.82H), 2.50-2.35 (m, 2H), 1.75-1.68 (m, 4H), 1.63-1.48 (m, 2H), 1.01 (t, J 9.6, 4H). MS (m/z): 439.6 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 107: N-(5-((4-((5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)methyl)cyclohexyl)methyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 106 (200 mg, 0.45 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (126 mg, 1.4 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (2 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14 using aq. NaOH to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and dried on high vacuum to obtain the titled compound as an off-white solid (80 mg). MS (m/z): 513.5 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 108: 3-((6-Aminopyridin-3-yl)methylene)cyclobutanecarbonitrile

2-Amino-5-bromopyridine (2 g, 11.6 mmol), 3-methylenecyclobutanecarbonitrile (2.14 g, 23 mmol), K₂CO₃ (6.38 g, 46 mmol), Xantphos (1.32 g, 2.28 mmol) and Pd(OAc)₂ (260 mg, 1.16 mmol) were taken in a sealed tube and dissolved in NMP (6 ml). The mixture was flushed with N₂ for 5 minutes. Then reaction mixture was stirred at 120° C. for 12 h. The reaction mixture was diluted with EtOAc and washed with water. EtOAc layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain the crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (1:1) as eluent to afford the titled compound (650 mg) as a brown liquid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 7.76 (s, 1H), 7.23 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 6.40 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 6.00 (s, 1H), 5.94 (s, 2H), 3.52-3.46 (m, 1H), 3.30-3.00 (m, 4H).

Intermediate 109: N-(5-((3-Cyanocyclobutylidene)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 108 (250 mg, 1.34 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (350 mg, 1.58 mmol), HATU (610 mg, 1.6 mmol), DIPEA (520 mg, 4 mmol) were taken in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by Combi-flash using EtOAc and Petether (14:86) as eluent to afford the titled compound (160 mg) as a yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.74 (s, 1H), 8.17 (s, 1H), 7.99 (d, J 5.8, 1H), 7.59 (d, J 8.7, 1H), 7.49-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 6.19 (s, 1H), 3.78 (s, 2H), 3.58-3.49 (m, 1H), 3.45-3.35 (m, 2H), 3.30-3.12 (m, 2H).

Intermediate 110: N-(5-((3-cyanocyclobutyl)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 109 (160 mg, 0.41 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (40 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (160 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (6 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 4 h. Reaction mixture was filtered thru cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with Et₂O (5 ml) to obtain the titled compound (130 mg) as an off-white solid.

Intermediate 111: N-(5-((3-(5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)cyclobutyl)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 110 (130 mg, 0.33 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (46 mg, 0.50 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (2 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14. Aqueous layer was extracted with EtOAc. EtOAc layer was dried over anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (70 mg) as a brown solid.

Intermediate 112: N-(5-((3-cyanocyclobutylidene)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 108 (1.4 g, 7.6 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (1.6 g, 9.04 mmol), HATU (3.5 g, 9.07 mmol), DIPEA (3.9 ml, 22.4 mmol) were taken in DMF (5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using DCM and MeOH (98:2) as eluent to afford the titled compound (670 mg) as a pale-green solid.

Intermediate 113: N-(5-((3-cyanocyclobutyl)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 112 (670 mg, 2.2 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (25 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (700 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (6 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 15 h. Reaction mixture was filtered thru cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with Et₂O (5 ml) to obtain the titled compound (360 mg) as a yellow semi solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.67 (s, 1H), 8.50 (s, 1H), 8.44 (d, J 4.4, 1H), 8.12 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.56 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.36-7.31 (m, 1H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 3.30-3.09 (m, 2H), 2.70-2.65 (m, 2H), 2.49-2.40 (m, 2H), 2.05-1.95 (m, 2H).

Intermediate 114: N-(5-((3-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)cyclobutyl)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 113 (360 mg, 1.17 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (214 mg, 2.35 mmol) and trifluoroacetic acid (3.5 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 2 h. After 2 h, reaction mixture was cooled to rt and basified to pH 14. Aqueous layer was extracted with DCM and MeOH (1:9). Organic layer was dried over anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography using 60-120 mesh silica gel using DCM and MeOH (9:1) as eluent to afford the titled compound (156 mg) as a yellow semi-solid. MS (m/z): 381.0 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 115: Benzyl 3-(bromomethyl)cyclobutanecarboxylate

Benzyl 3-(hydroxymethyl)cyclobutanecarboxylate (9.5 g, 43.14 mmol), Triphenylphosphine (16.9 g, 64.45 mmol) and DCM (150 ml) were mixed and cooled to 0° C. Carbon tetrabromide (28.6 g, 86.2 mmol) was added to the above mixture lot-wise. Reaction mixture was allowed to stir at rt for 16 h. After completion of reaction, reaction mass diluted with water and organic layer separated. Aqueous layer extracted with DCM. Combined DCM layers were dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and DCM removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (3:97) as eluent to afford the titled compound (7.1 g) as a colour less liquid.

Intermediate 116: Benzyl 3-((6-aminopyridazin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutanecarboxylate

Dry Dioxane (48 ml) and NiCl₂(dppp) (2 g, 3.67 mmol) were mixed and stirred at rt for 15 mins under nitrogen atmosphere. Diethyl zinc (1M in hexane) (55.5 ml, 55.5 mmol) was added to the above mixture and stirred again at rt for 15 mins. Intermediate 115 (7.86 g, 27.76 mmol) was dissolved in dry dioxane (10 ml) and added to the above mixture at rt. Reaction was allowed to stir at reflux for 4 h. At this stage 3-Amino-6-chloropyridazine (2.4 g, 18.5 mmol) was added to the above mixture and stirred at reflux for 2 h. After completion of the reaction, reaction mass quenched with MeOH (240 ml). Evaporated the reaction mass to obtain crude. Crude was diluted with 250 ml MeOH and DCM mixture (1:9). Aq. NaHCO₃ was added to the above solution and stirred for 15 mins. Filtered the heterogeneous mixture to remove insoluble material. From filtrate organic layer separated and evaporated to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford the titled compound (1.8 g) as a brown gummy liquid. MS (m/z): 298.0 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 117: Benzyl 3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridazin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutanecarboxylate

Intermediate 116 (1.8 g, 6.05 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (1.6 g, 7.3 mmol), HATU (2.8 g, 7.3 mmol), DIPEA (3.2 ml, 18.6 mmol) were taken in DMF (5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under inert atmosphere for 1 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. DCM layer dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (2:98) as eluent to afford the titled compound (1.8 g) as a brown liquid. MS (m/z): 499.8 [M+H]⁺.

Intermediate 118: 3-((6-(2-(3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridazin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutanecarboxylic acid

Intermediate 117 (1.6 g, 3.2 mmol) was dissolved in MeOH (50 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (1.3 g) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (5 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave for 3 h. Reaction mixture was filtered thru cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. Combined filtrate layers were distilled on rotavapour to obtain the titled compound (420 mg) as a black solid.

Intermediate 119: N-(6-((3-(5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)cyclobutyl)methyl)pyridazin-3-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 118 (420 mg, 1.02 mmol), Thiosemicarbazide (280 mg, 3.07 mmol) and POCl₃ (4.2 ml) were mixed and heated to 90° C. for 3 h. After completion of reaction, reaction mass was cooled to rt and quenched into crushed ice (150 g). The resulting mixture was basified to pH 10 with saturated aq. NaOH. Aqueous layer was extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1) mixture. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄ and evaporated on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford the titled compound as an off-white solid (50 mg). ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 11.28 (s, 1H), 8.17 (d, J 8.9, 1H), 7.57-7.50 (m, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.39-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.24 (d, J 8, 1H), 6.99 (s, 2H), 3.84 (s, 2H), 3.80-3.40 (m, 1H), 3.06 (d, J 7.7, 0.83H), 2.96 (d, J 7.2, 1.17H), 2.80-2.40 (m, 2H), 2.35-1.85 (m, 3H).

Example 1 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-{5-[4-(5-(2-(2-methoxyphenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)but-1-ynyl]pyridin-2-yl}acetamide

Intermediate 3 (100 mg, 0.25 mmol), 2-Methoxyphenylacetic acid (83 mg, 0.5 mmol), HATU (209 mg, 0.55 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.21 ml, 1.25 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (1.5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (3:97) as eluent to afford the titled compound (45 mg) as an off-white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.53 (s, 1H), 10.87 (s, 1H), 8.32-8.30 (m, 1H), 7.99 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.72 (dd, J 1.9, 8.6, 1H), 7.46-7.37 (m, 2H), 7.32-7.28 (m, 2H), 7.27-7.16 (m, 2H), 6.95 (d, J 7.9, 1H), 6.90-6.87 (m, 1H), 3.91 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 3.70 (s, 3H), 3.30-3.20 (m, 2H), 2.89-2.85 (m, 2H). MS (m/z): 547.8 [M+H]⁺.

Example 2 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-{5-[4-(5-(2-(2-methoxyphenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl]pyridin-2-yl}acetamide

Example 1 (35 mg, 0.064 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (15 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with DCM and Petether mixture (1:1) to obtain the titled compound as an off-white solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.49 (s, 1H), 10.62 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 1.84, 8.4, 1H), 7.45-7.38 (m, 2H), 7.30-7.18 (m, 4H), 6.96 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 6.89 (t, J 7.4, 1H), 3.88 (s, 2H), 3.75 (s, 2H), 3.71 (s, 3H), 2.97 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7, 2H), 1.71-1.55 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 552.7 [M+H]⁺.

Example 3 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 7 (57 mg, 0.1 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (5 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (50 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave. Reaction mixture was filtered through cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on TLC plate with DCM and MeOH (95:5) as eluent to obtain the titled compound (4 mg) as a pale-green solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 10.65 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4.4, 1H), 8.14 (bs, 1H), 7.77-7.73 (m, 1H), 7.61-7.55 (m, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.39-7.31 (m, 3H), 7.29-7.21 (m, 2H), 3.98 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 4 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-2-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 11 (100 mg, 0.22 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (46 mg, 0.27 mmol), HATU (185 mg, 0.49 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.66 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (5:95) as eluent to afford the titled compound (42 mg) as a yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 10.29 (s, 1H), 8.59 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4.1, 1H), 7.90 (d, J 7.2, 1H), 7.77-7.73 (m, 1H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.40-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.29-7.21 (m, 2H), 7.17 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 3.98 (s, 2H), 3.73 (s, 2H), 2.97 (bs, 2H), 2.69 (bs, 2H), 1.68 (bs, 4H). MS (m/z): 571.8 [M+H]⁺.

Example 5 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-2-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 11 (100 mg, 0.22 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (46 mg, 0.27 mmol), HATU (185 mg, 0.49 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.66 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (5:95) as eluent to afford the titled compound (70 mg) as a grey solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.66 (s, 1H), 10.31 (s, 1H), 8.60 (s, 1H), 8.50 (s, 1H), 8.46 (d, J 4.6, 1H), 7.90 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.71 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.24 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.16 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 3.84 (s, 2H), 3.73 (s, 2H), 3.00-2.92 (m, 2H), 2.71-2.65 (m, 2H), 1.70-1.60 (bs, 4H).

Example 6 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyrazin-2-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 15 (100 mg, 0.22 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (46 mg, 0.27 mmol), HATU (185 mg, 0.49 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.66 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (5:95) as eluent to afford the titled compound (25 mg) as a yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 10.92 (s, 1H), 9.16 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4, 1H), 8.28 (d, J 1.2, 1H), 7.75 (dt, J 1.8, 7.6, 1H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.40-7.33 (m, 3H), 7.30-7.22 (m, 2H), 3.98 (s, 2H), 3.81 (s, 2H), 3.01-2.98 (m, 2H), 2.80-2.60 (m, 2H), 1.85-1.75 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 572.7 [M+H]⁺.

Example 7 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(2-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyrimidin-5-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 19 (130 mg, 0.29 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (60 mg, 0.34 mmol), HATU (130 mg, 0.34 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.25 ml, 1.47 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (5:95) as eluent to afford the titled compound (40 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.64 (s, 1H), 10.72 (s, 1H), 8.55-8.45 (m, 3H), 7.76 (dt, J 1.6, 7.7, 1H), 7.45-7.41 (m, 3H), 7.38 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 3.99 (s, 2H), 3.85 (s, 2H), 2.99 (t, J 6.9, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.72-1.58 (m, 4H).

Example 8 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 23 (90 mg, 0.24 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (64 mg, 0.29 mmol), HATU (204 mg, 0.54 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.13 ml, 0.73 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was washed with Et₂O and followed by 10% IPA in petether to afford the titled compound (65 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. M.P.: 176-178° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.59 (s, 1H), 10.55 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4.2, 1H), 8.13 (s, 1H), 7.95 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.73 (t, J 7.9, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 8.8, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.40-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.28-7.22 (m, 2H), 3.90 (s, 2H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 3.00 (t, J 6.7, 2H), 2.58 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.73-1.58 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 571.8 [M+H]⁺.

Example 9 N-(6-Methyl-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 27 (100 mg, 0.22 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (46 mg, 0.27 mmol), HATU (185 mg, 0.48 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.66 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using Methanol and DCM (4:96) as eluent afforded the titled compound (26 mg) as a Pale-Yellow solid. M.P.: 96-101° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.58 (s, 1H), 10.52 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 3.8, 1H), 7.80-7.72 (m, 2H), 7.50-7.40 (m, 2H), 7.39-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.29-7.19 (m, 2H), 3.99 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 3.00 (t, J 7.6, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7.6, 2H), 2.37 (s, 3H), 1.77-1.70 (m, 2H), 1.61-1.52 (m, 2H). MS (m/z): 585.9 [M+H]⁺.

Example 10 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (70 mg, 0.16 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (32 mg, 0.19 mmol), HATU (130 mg, 0.34 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.08 ml, 0.47 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was washed with Et₂O to afford the titled compound (60 mg) as an Off-white solid. M.P.: 176-178° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 10.59 (s, 1H), 8.49 (s, 1H), 8.46 (d, J 4.4, 1H), 8.13 (s, 1H), 7.92 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.71 (d, J 7.9, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.46-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.22 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 3.84 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.73-1.55 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 571.8 [M+H]⁺.

Example 11 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (200 mg, 0.54 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (150 mg, 0.68 mmol), HATU (250 mg, 0.68 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.3 ml, 1.62 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford a solid. Solid was triturated with Et₂O to afford the titled compound (170 mg) as an Off-white solid. M.P.: 188-190° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.59 (s, 1H), 10.62 (s, 1H), 8.51 (s, 1H), 8.44 (d, J 3.8, 1H), 8.14 (d, J 1.7, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.73 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.57 (dd, J 8.6, 2.1, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.25 (d, J 8, 1H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.71-1.58 (m, 4H).

Example 12 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (100 mg, 0.27 mmol), 2-Chlorophenylacetic acid (56 mg, 0.32 mmol), HATU (130 mg, 0.34 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.14 ml, 0.8 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (60 mg) as an Off-white solid. M.P.: 213-215° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.63 (s, 1H), 10.63 (s, 1H), 8.51 (s, 1H), 8.44 (d, J 3.8, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.92 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 8.4, 1.8, 1H), 7.47-7.38 (m, 2H), 7.36-7.27 (m, 3H), 3.97 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 6.9, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.2, 2H), 1.75-1.60 (m, 4H).

Example 13 2-(3-(Methylsulfonyl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (70 mg, 0.19 mmol), 2-(3-(methylsulfonyl)phenyl)acetic acid (49 mg, 0.22 mmol), HATU (87 mg, 0.23 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.6 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (40 mg) as an Off-white solid. M.P.: 195-198° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.64 (s, 1H), 10.62 (s, 1H), 8.51 (bs, 1H), 8.44 (bs, 1H), 8.13 (s, 1H), 7.96-7.89 (m, 2H), 7.83 (d, J 7.6, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.6, 1H), 7.69-7.55 (m, 3H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 1H), 3.94 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 3.19 (S, 3H), 2.97 (t, J 6.8, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.72-1.57 (m, 4H).

Example 14 2-(4-(Methylsulfonyl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (70 mg, 0.19 mmol), 2-(4-(methylsulfonyl)phenyl)acetic acid (49 mg, 0.22 mmol), HATU (87 mg, 0.23 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.6 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (35 mg) as a Pale-Yellow solid. M.P.: 220-222° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.65 (s, 1H), 10.62 (s, 1H), 8.51 (bs, 1H), 8.45 (bs, 1H), 8.13 (s, 1H), 7.92 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.88 (d, J 8.2, 2H), 7.73 (d, J 7.5, 1H), 7.57 (d, J 8.1, 2H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 1H), 3.93 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 3.18 (s, 3H), 2.97 (t, J 6.7, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.73-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 15 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (100 mg, 0.19 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (57 mg, 0.33 mmol), HATU (130 mg, 0.34 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.15 ml, 0.85 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water to obtain a solid. Solid was filtered and washed with water. Solid was triturated with Et2O to obtain the titled compound (70 mg) as an Off-White solid. M.P.: 190-193° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 10.62 (s, 1H), 8.55-8.40 (m, 4H), 8.13 (s, 1H), 7.92 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.71 (d, J 4.9, 2H), 7.57 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 2H), 3.84 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 3.01-2.93 (m, 2H), 2.60-2.53 (m, 2H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 16 2-(3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.22 mmol), (3-Trifluoromethoxy)phenyl acid (60 mg, 0.27 mmol), HATU (100 mg, 0.27 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.66 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using Methanol and DCM (3:97) as eluent to afford the titled compound (45 mg) as a white solid. M.P.: 175-178° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.59 (s, 1H), 10.59 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.57 (dd, J 8.5, 2, 1H), 7.49-7.41 (m, 2H), 7.38-7.31 (m, 4H), 7.26-7.21 (m, 2H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 6.9, 2H), 1.73-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 17 2-(3-Cyanophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (200 mg, 0.44 mmol), 3-Cyanophenylacetic acid (86 mg, 0.53 mmol), HATU (200 mg, 0.53 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.23 ml, 1.31 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using Methanol and DCM (4:96) as eluent to afford the titled compound (20 mg) as a Off-White solid. M.P.: 189.9-192.4° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.59 (s, 1H), 10.59 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.79-7.71 (m, 2H), 7.64 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.60-7.52 (m, 2H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 3.89 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 6.9, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.73-1.59 (m, 4H).

Example 18 2-(3-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (70 mg, 0.19 mmol), 3-Chlorophenylacetic acid (38 mg, 0.22 mmol), HATU (153 mg, 0.4 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.57 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (10 mg) as an Off-White solid. M.P.: 252.8-254.6° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.60 (s, 1H), 10.65 (s, 1H), 8.50 (s, 1H), 8.44 (d, J 4.5, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.39 (s, 1H), 7.36-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.26 (d, J 6.7, 1H), 3.81 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 7.2, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 19 2-(2-Fluorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (70 mg, 0.19 mmol), 2-Fluorophenylacetic acid (35 mg, 0.22 mmol), HATU (158 mg, 0.4 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.57 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (27 mg) as an Off-White solid. M.P.: 192-194° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.65 (s, 1H), 10.67 (s, 1H), 8.51 (bs, 1H), 8.45 (bs, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 8.5, 2, 1H), 7.40-7.29 ((m, 3H), 7.20-7.13 (m, 2H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.71-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 20 2-(3-Fluorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 33 (70 mg, 0.19 mmol), 3-Fluorophenylacetic acid (35 mg, 0.23 mmol), HATU (158 mg, 0.4 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.57 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH were removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (20 mg) as an Off-White solid. M.P.: 202-204° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 10.67 (s, 1H), 8.51 (bs, 1H), 8.44 (bs, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 8.5, 2, 1H), 7.40-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.19-7.05 (m, 3H), 3.82 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.70-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 21 N-(6-Fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 37 (100 mg, 0.21 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid (44 mg, 0.26 mmol), HATU (178 mg, 0.47 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.64 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH were removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (17 mg) as an Off-White solid. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.64 (s, 1H), 10.80 (s, 1H), 8.49 (s, 1H), 8.46 (d, J 4.4, 1H), 7.85 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.81-7.65 (m, 2H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.23 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 3.84 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7, 2H), 1.75-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 22 2-(Pyridin-4-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 41 (60 mg, 0.16 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (43 mg, 0.19 mmol), HATU (135 mg, 0.36 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.08 ml, 0.49 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH were removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with Et2O to obtain the titled compound (40 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. M.P.: 135-137° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.60 (s, 1H), 10.64 (s, 1H), 8.48 (bs, 1H), 8.14 (d, J 1.6, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 2, 8.2, 1H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.35-7.30 (m, 4H), 7.25 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 570.8 [M+H]⁺.

Example 23 2-Chloro-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)propanamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.23 mmol), 2-Chloropropionic acid (29 mg, 0.28 mmol), HATU (191 mg, 0.5 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.69 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with Et₂O to obtain the titled compound (35 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. M.P.: 132-134° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.75 (s, 1H), 10.6 (s, 1H), 8.15 (s, 1H), 7.94 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.59 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 3H), 7.38-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.22 (d, J 8, 1H), 4.78 (q, J 6.7, 1H), 3.77 (s, 2H), 3.01 (t, J 6.8, 2H), 2.58 (t, J 7, 2H), 1.75-1.58 (m, 7H). MS (m/z): 542.5 [M+H]⁺.

Example 24 2-Chloro-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butanamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.23 mmol), 2-Chloropropionic acid (34 mg, 0.28 mmol), HATU (191 mg, 0.5 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.69 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (17 mg) as an off-white solid. M.P.: 126-128° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.77 (s, 1H), 10.59 (s, 1H), 8.15 (s, 1H), 7.94 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.59 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.47-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.22 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 4.59 (t, J 6.9, 1H), 3.77 (s, 2H), 3.01 (t, J 6.9, 2H), 2.58 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 2.10-2.00 (m, 1H), 1.95-1.85 (m, 1H), 1.75-1.55 (m, 4H), 0.94 (t, J 7.4, 3H).

Example 25 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl) pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 45 (100 mg, 0.25 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (52 mg, 0.3 mmol), HATU (208 mg, 0.55 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.13 ml, 0.75 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (60 mg) as a pale-brown solid. M.P.: 149-151° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.57 (s, 1H), 10.54 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.92 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.75 (dt, J 1.8, 7.7, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 2.1, 8.5, 1H), 7.45-7.36 (m, 3H), 7.31-7.24 (m, 3H), 3.99 (s, 2H), 3.89 (s, 2H), 3.01-2.96 (m, 2H), 2.61-2.54 (m, 2H), 1.75-1.60 (m, 4H).

Example 26 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl) pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 45 (100 mg, 0.25 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (52 mg, 0.3 mmol), HATU (208 mg, 0.55 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.13 ml, 0.75 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (23 mg) as a pale-brown solid. M.P.: 171-173° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.61 (s, 1H), 10.55 (s, 1H), 8.50 (s, 1H), 8.47 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.92 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.57 (dd, J 2, 8.5, 1H), 7.45-7.38 (m, 2H), 7.37-7.32 (m, 1H), 7.30-7.25 (m, 2H), 3.88 (s, 2H), 3.85 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.2, 2H), 1.23-1.07 (m, 4H).

Example 27 N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(1H-pyrazol-1-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.23 mmol), 2-(1H-pyrazol-1-yl)acetic acid (39 mg, 0.31 mmol), HATU (217 mg, 0.57 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.13 ml, 0.77 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was triturated with Petether to afford the titled compound (50 mg) as an off-white solid. M.P.: 174-178° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.70 (s, 1H), 10.60 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.94 (s, 1H), 7.75 (s, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 7.9, 1H), 7.49-7.41 (m, 2H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 6.6, 1H), 6.27 (s, 1H), 5.16 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 3.04-2.96 (m, 2H), 2.61-2.55 (m, 2H), 1.73-1.55 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 560.8 [M+H].

Example 28 2-(Pyrazin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.23 mmol), 2-(pyrazin-2-yl)acetic acid (42 mg, 0.31 mmol), HATU (217 mg, 0.57 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.13 ml, 0.77 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (96:4) as eluent to afford the titled compound (48 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. M.P.: 159-162° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.65 (s, 1H), 10.59 (s, 1H), 8.66 (s, 1H), 8.56 (d, J 8.4, 2H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 1.8, 8.4, 1H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.22 (d, J 8, 1H), 4.08 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.5, 2H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 29 N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 37 (56 mg, 0.12 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid (24 mg, 0.14 mmol), HATU (95 mg, 0.26 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.06 ml, 0.36 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (1 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH were removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (6:94) as eluent to afford titled compound (25 mg) as a Pale-Yellow solid. M.P.: 160-162° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.63 (s, 1H), 10.82 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4.3, 1H), 7.86 (d, J 7.6, 1H0, 7.81-7.73 (m, 2H), 7.80 7.73 (m, 2H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.40-7.31 (m, 3H), 7.29-7.21 (m, 2H), 3.98 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 6.9, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.73-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 30 2-(3-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.23 mmol), 2-(3-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)acetic acid (57 mg, 0.25 mmol), HATU (173 mg, 0.45 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.57 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (96:4) as eluent to afford the titled compound (30 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. M.P.: 188-191° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.63 (s, 1H), 10.65 (s, 1H), 9.72 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.59 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.47-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.30-7.21 (m, 2H), 7.15 (s, 1H), 7.09 (d, J 8.1, 1H), 7.04 (d, J 7.6, 1H), 3.76 (s, 4H), 3.00-2.94 (m, 5H), 2.56 (t, J 7.2, 2H), 1.70-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 31 2-(4-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (80 mg, 0.21 mmol), 2-(4-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)acetic acid (57 mg, 0.25 mmol), HATU (173 mg, 0.45 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.62 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (96:4) as eluent to afford the titled compound (48 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. M.P.: 188-191° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz):

Example 32 N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 49 (100 mg, 0.26 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (68 mg, 0.31 mmol), HATU (216 mg, 0.56 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.14 ml, 0.78 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (30 mg) as a grey solid. M.P.: 155-157° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.56 (s, 1H), 10.79 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4, 1H), 7.87 (d, J 7.5, 1H), 7.81-7.72 (m, 2H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.39-7.31 (m, 3H), 7.28-7.23 (m, 2H), 3.89 (s, 2H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 7.2, 2H), 2.58-2.53 (m, 2H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 33 Tert-butyl 4-(4-(2-oxo-2-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-ylamino)ethyl)phenyl)piperidine-1-carboxylate

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.22 mmol), 2-(4-(1-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)acetic acid (88 mg, 0.28 mmol), HATU (184 mg, 0.48 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.62 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (98:2) as eluent to afford the titled compound (30 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. M.P.: 184-186° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): M.P.: 155-157° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.58 (bs, 1H), 10.65 (s, 1H), 8.14 (d, J 1.7, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.58 (dd, J 2.1, 8.5, 1H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.26-7.16 (m, 5H), 4.04 (d, J 10.8, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 3.71 (s, 2H), 3.40-3.30 (m, 1H), 2.96 (t, J 6.8, 2H), 2.85-2.55 (m, 4H), 1.73-1.55 (m, 6H), 1.50-1.40 (m, 2H), 1.39 (s, 9H).

Example 34 2-(4-(Piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido) pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide hydrochloride

Example 33 50 mg, 0.06 mmol) was dissolved in THF (7 ml) and added Et₂O.HCl (2 ml). This mixture was stirred under nitrogen atmosphere for 2 h then removed THF and diethyl ether on rotavapour to obtain a residue. Residue was triturated with diethyl ether to obtain the titled compound (20 mg) as an off-white solid M.P.: 150-155° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 11.09 (s, 1H), 8.92-8.84 (m, 1H), 8.76-8.65 (m, 1H), 8.15 (d, J 1.6, 1H), 7.88 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.71 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.49-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.33 (m, 2H), 7.30-7.22 (m, 3H), 7.17 (d, J 8.1, 2H), 3.81 (s, 2H), 3.75 (s, 2H), 3.36-3.29 (m, 2H), 3.00-2.90 (m, 4H), 2.85-2.75 (m, 1H), 2.59 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.92-1.71 (m, 4H), 1.70-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 35 2-(3,5-Bis(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.26 mmol), 2-(3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)acetic acid (81 mg, 0.31 mmol), HATU (217 mg, 0.57 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.14 ml, 0.78 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (30 mg) as a pale-yellow solid M.P.: 179-181° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.95 (s, 1H), 10.65 (s, 1H), 8.14 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.66 (s, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 8.7, 1H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.37-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.23 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 5.49 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 6.8, 2H), 2.56 (t, J 7.1, 2H), 1.71-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 36 2-(3-(Piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido) pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide hydrochloride

Intermediate 29 (180 mg, 0.47 mmol), 2-(3-(1-(Tert-butoxycarbonyl)piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)acetic acid (191 mg, 0.6 mmol), HATU (389 mg, 1.02 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.25 ml, 1.39 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 16 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1) mixture. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford tert-butyl 4-(3-(2-oxo-2-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-ylamino)ethyl)phenyl)piperidine-1-carboxylate (70 mg) as a pale-yellow solid. Tert-butyl 4-(3-(2-oxo-2-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-ylamino)ethyl)phenyl)piperidine-1-carboxylate (70 mg, 0.093 mmol) dissolved in THF (3 ml) and added Et₂O.HCl (3 ml). This mixture was stirred under nitrogen atmosphere for 2 h then removed THF and diethyl ether on rotavapour to obtain a residue. Residue was triturated with diethyl ether to obtain the titled compound (14 mg) as an off-white solid M.P.: 107-111° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.63 (s, 1H), 10.99 (s, 1H), 8.83 (bs, 1H), 8.65 (bs, 1H), 8.15 (s, 1H), 7.89 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.69 (d, J 7.9, 1H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.32 (m, 2H), 7.31-7.22 (m, 2H), 7.18-7.14 (m, 2H), 7.11 (d, J 7.6, 1H), 3.80 (s, 2H), 3.77 (s, 2H), 3.34 (d, J 12.4, 2H), 3.01-2.90 (m, 4H), 2.85-2.75 (m, 1H), 2.58 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.95-1.78 (m, 4H), 1.70-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 37 3-Fluoro-6-methyl-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)picolinamide

Intermediate 29 (100 mg, 0.26 mmol), 3-fluoro-6-methylpicolinic acid (71 mg, 0.46 mmol), HATU (192 mg, 0.50 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.11 ml, 0.66 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 12 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM:MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water and aq. NaHCO₃ solution. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (30 mg) as a pale-yellow solid M.P.: 130-133° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.66 (s, 1H), 8.30 (d, J 2.1, 1H), 8.15 (d, J 1.8, 1H), 7.94 (d, J 8.3, 1H), 7.60 (dd, J 2.2, 8.6, 1H), 7.53 (d, J 6, 1H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.32 (m, 3H), 7.23 (d, J 7.5, 1H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.88-2.81 (m, 2H), 2.60-2.55 (m, 2H), 2.44 (s, 3H), 1.70-1.60 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 588.9 [M+H]⁺.

Example 38 N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 49 (70 mg, 0.18 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (37 mg, 0.22 mmol), HATU (151 mg, 0.4 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.1 ml, 0.54 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (1 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 2 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM:MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water and aq. NaHCO₃ solution. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH were removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (94:6) as eluent to afford the titled compound (25 mg) as an Off-White solid. M.P.: 171-173° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.67 (s, 1H), 10.8 (s, 1H), 8.50-8.44 (m, 3H), 7.87 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.81-7.69 (m, 3H), 7.39-7.31 (m, 2H), 7.27-7.22 (m, 1H), 3.89 (s, 2H), 3.84 (s, 2H), 2.98 (t, J 7, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.4, 2H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 39 N-(6-Fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(methylsulfonamido)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide

Intermediate 37 (80 mg, 0.17 mmol), 2-(3-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)acetic acid (47 mg, 0.20 mmol), HATU (142.5 mg, 0.37 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.09 ml, 0.51 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (1 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH were removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (3:97) as eluent to afford titled compound (11 mg) as a Off-White solid. M.P.: 100-103° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.62 (s, 1H), 10.82 (s, 1H), 9.72 (s, 1H), 7.88-7.72 (m, 2H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.36-7.21 (m, 4H), 7.18-7.00 (m, 3H), 3.75 (s, 4H), 2.97 (m, 5H), 2.60-2.52 (m, 4H), 1.72-1.55 (m, 4H).

Example 40 N,N′-(5,5′-(Butane-1,4-diyl)bis(pyridine-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl)acetamide)

Intermediate 52 (220 mg, 0.34 mmol) was dissolved in EtOAc (30 ml). To this mixture added Pd(OH)₂ (440 mg) and stirred under H₂ atmosphere (4 Kg Pressure) in an autoclave. Reaction mixture was filtered thru cealite bed and bed was washed with EtOAc. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using EtOAc and Petether (1:1) to obtain the titled compound as an Off-white solid. M.P.: 153-155° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 10.62 (s, 2H), 8.13 (s, 2H), 7.92 (d, J 8.9, 2H), 7.57 (d, J 8.4, 2H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 2H), 7.34 (d, J 8.8, 4H), 7.23 (d, J 7.8, 2H), 3.76 (s, 4H), 2.60-2.50 (bs, 4H), 1.60-1.50 (bs, 4H). MS (m/z): 647.5 [M+H]⁺.

Example 41 N-(5-(4-(3-Fluoro-4-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)phenyl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 56 (150 mg, 0.32 mmol), 2-Pydidylacetic acid hydrochloride (67 mg, 0.38 mmol), HATU (267 mg, 0.7 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.17 ml, 0.96 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2.5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 1 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water and aq. NaHCO₃ solution. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (72 mg) as a yellow solid. M.P.: 164-168° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.59 (s, 1H), 9.83 (s, 1H), 8.49 (d, J 4.2, 1H), 7.76 (t, J 7.5, 1H), 7.67 (t, J 8, 1H), 7.48-7.20 (m, 6H), 7.06 (d, J 12, 1H), 6.95 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 3.99 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 6.7, 2H), 2.58 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.73-1.55 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 588.7 [M+H]⁺.

Example 42 N-(5-(4-(3-Fluoro-4-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)phenyl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 56 (150 mg, 0.32 mmol), 3-Pydidylacetic acid hydrochloride (67 mg, 0.38 mmol), HATU (267 mg, 0.7 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.17 ml, 0.96 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2.5 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 1 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water and aq. NaHCO₃ solution. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified on Combi-flash using DCM and MeOH (97:3) as eluent to afford the titled compound (87 mg) as a yellow solid. M.P.: 176-180° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.60 (s, 1H), 9.82 (s, 1H), 8.49 (s, 1H), 8.46 (d, J 3.7, 1H), 7.75-7.63 (m, 2H), 7.48-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.23 (d, J 8.2, 1H), 7.06 (d, J 11.8, 1H), 6.95 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 3.84 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.97 (t, J 6.8, 2H), 2.57 (t, J 7.3, 2H), 1.71-1.55 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 588.6 [M+H]⁺.

Example 101 N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-phenylacetamide)

Intermediate 101 (1 g, 3.54 mmol), Phenylacetic acid (960 mg, 7.05 mmol), HATU (3.2 g, 8.41 mmol) and N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (1.9 ml, 10.8 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under N₂ atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mixture was diluted with water to obtain solid. Solid was filtered and washed with water. Solid was dissolved in DMSO (25 ml). MeOH (100 ml) was added to the above solution and stirred for 10 mins. Solid was precipitated while stirring. Solid was filtered and washed with MeOH ((100 ml) to afford 400 mg crude white solid. This solid was purified by column on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (3:97) as eluent to afford the titled compound (25 mg) as a white solid. M.P.: 281-283° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.64 (s, 2H), 7.34-7.20 (m, 10H), 3.77 (s, 4H), 3.4-3.3 (m, 2H), 1.94 (s, 8H). MS (m/z): 518.9 [M+H]⁺.

Example 102 N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide)

Intermediate 101 (0.3 g, 1.06 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (370 mg, 2.13 mmol), HATU (970 mg, 2.55 mmol) and N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.55 ml, 3.18 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under N₂ atmosphere for 16 h. Reaction mixture was diluted with water to obtain solid. Solid was filtered and washed with water. Solid was dried on high vacuum pump. Solid was stirred with MeOH (5 ml) for 20 mins. Solid was filtered and washed with MeOH (5 ml) to afford titled compound (120 mg) as a white solid. M.P.: 180-182° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.74 (s, 2H), 8.75-8.60 (m, 4H), 8.07 (d, J 7.6, 2H), 7.70-7.61 (m, 2H), 3.97 (s, 4H), 3.32 (bs, 2H), 1.95 (bs, 8H). MS (m/z): 521.6 [M+H]⁺.

Example 103 N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide)

Intermediate 104 (0.3 g, 0.97 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (0.34 g, 1.93 mmol), HATU (0.88 g, 2.31 mmol) and N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.8 ml, 5.80 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (4 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under N₂ atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mixture was diluted with water to obtain solid. Solid was filtered and washed with water. Solid was purified by column on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (4:96) as eluent to afford the titled compound (25 mg) as an off-white solid. M.P.: 268-270° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.67 (s, 2H), 8.5-8.46 (m, 4H), 7.71 (d, J 7.7, 2H), 7.39-7.31 (m, 2H), 3.84 (s, 4H), 3.0-2.5 (m, 6H), 1.8-1.7 (m, 8H). MS (m/z): 548.9 [M+H]⁺.

Example 104 N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide)

Intermediate 104 (0.3 g, 0.97 mmol), 3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (0.425 g, 1.93 mmol), HATU (0.88 g, 2.31 mmol) and N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.8 ml, 5.80 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (4 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under N₂ atmosphere for 12 h. Reaction mixture was diluted with water to obtain solid. Solid was filtered and washed with water. Solid was purified by column on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (4:96) as eluent to afford the titled compound (15 mg) as a brown solid. M.P.: 240-244° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.64 (s, 2H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 2H), 7.33 (d, J 6.8, 4H), 7.25 (d, J 8.6, 2H), 3.87 (s, 4H), 2.96 (d, J 7.4, 4.8H), 2.82 (d, J 7.4, 1.2H), 1.50-1.30 (m, 8H). MS (m/z): 714.5 [M+H]⁺.

Example 105 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-((4-((5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)methyl)cyclohexyl)methyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 107 (80 mg, 0.16 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (33 mg, 0.19 mmol), HATU (72 mg, 0.19 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.13 ml, 0.77 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (4:96) as eluent to afford the titled compound (12 mg) as an off-white solid. M.P.: 278-280° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.63 (s, 2H), 8.48 (d, J 4.3, 1H), 7.75 (dt, J 1.6, 7.7, 1H), 7.47-7.43 (m, 1H), 7.39-7.32 (m, 3H), 7.30-7.23 (m, 2H), 3.98 (s, 2H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 3.00-2.80 (m, 4H), 1.70-1.52 (m, 6H), 1.02-0.90 (m, 4H). MS (m/z): 632.9 [M+H]⁺.

Example 106 N,N′-(5,5′-(Cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide)

Intermediate 104 (250 mg, 0.97 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (280 mg, 1.61 mmol), HATU (730 mg, 1.92 mmol) and N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.7 ml, 4.0 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt under N₂ atmosphere for 15 h. Reaction mixture was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. DCM layer was washed with water and dried the DCM layer on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (5:95) as eluent to afford the titled compound (120 mg) as a brown solid. M.P.: 190-192° C. MS (m/z): 549.7 [M+H]⁺.

Example 107 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 111 (70 mg, 0.16 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (32 mg, 0.18 mmol), HATU (69 mg, 0.18 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.13 ml, 0.77 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with EtOAc. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. EtOAc was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (4:96) as eluent to afford the titled compound (8 mg) as an off-white solid. M.P.: 160-162° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.63 (s, 1H), 10.63 (s, 1H), 8.48 (s, 1H), 8.20-8.12 (m, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 7.2, 1H), 7.80-7.73 (m, 1H), 7.62-7.55 (m, 1H), 7.49-7.20 (m, 6H), 3.99 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 2.81-2.60 (m, 4H), 2.50-2.00 (m, 4H).

Example 108 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 111 (160 mg, 0.35 mmol), 3-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (72 mg, 0.41 mmol), HATU (160 mg, 0.42 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.19 ml, 1.08 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (3 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 30 mins. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM. Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM was removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column chromatography on 60-120 mesh silica gel using MeOH and DCM (5:95) as eluent to afford the titled compound (65 mg) as an off-white solid. M.P.: 193-195° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.65 (s, 1H), 10.6 (s, 1H), 8.50 (s, 1H), 8.46 (d, J 3.1, 1H), 8.13 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 8.5, 1H), 7.71 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 7.57 (d, J 8.6, 1H), 7.47-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.32 (m, 3H), 7.22 (d, J 7.7, 1H), 3.85 (s, 2H), 3.76 (s, 2H), 3.71-3.61 (m, 1H), 2.66 (d, J 6.9, 2H), 2.55-2.45 (m, 3H), 2.02-1.93 (m, 2H).

Example 109 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-((3-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)cyclobutyl)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 114 (150 mg, 0.393 mmol), (3-Trifluoromethoxy)phenylacetic acid (103 mg, 0.47 mmol), HATU (328 mg, 0.87 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.2 ml, 1.17 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (4 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 3 h. Reaction mass was diluted with water and extracted with DCM and MeOH (9:1). Organic layer was washed with water. Organic layer was dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM and MeOH were removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by column-chromatography using MeOH and DCM (4:96) as eluent to afford titled compound (20 mg) as an Off-White solid. M.P.: 132-134° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.66 (s, 1H), 10.67 (s, 1H), 8.50 (s, 1H), 8.40 (s, 1H), 8.13 (s, 1H), 7.93 (d, J 7.5, 1H), 7.72 (d, J 7.6, 1H), 7.58 (d, J 8.4, 1H), 7.49-7.41 (m, 1H), 7.38-7.30 (m, 3H), 7.47 (d, J 7.8, 1H), 3.87 (s, 2H), 3.74 (s, 2H), 3.67 (t, J 9.2, 1H), 2.70-2.61 (m, 2H), 2.40-2.18 (m, 3H), 2.01-1.93 (m, 2H).

Example 110 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridazin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide

Intermediate 119 (50 mg, 0.1 mmol), 2-Pyridylacetic acid hydrochloride (23 mg, 0.13 mmol), HATU (90 mg, 0.23 mmol), N-Ethyldiisopropyl amine (0.05 ml, 0.32 mmol) were dissolved in DMF (2 ml). This mixture was stirred at rt for 1 h. Reaction mass was poured in to water. Aqueous layer extracted with DCM and DCM layer dried on anhydrous Na₂SO₄. DCM removed on rotavapour to obtain crude. Crude was purified by combi-flash using MeOH and DCM (4:96) as eluent to afford the titled compound (18 mg) as a Off-White solid. M.P.: 175-178° C. ¹H-NMR (δ ppm, DMSO-d₆, 400 MHz): 12.66 (s, 1H), 11.28 (s, 1H), 8.48 (d, J 4.12, 1H), 8.17 (dd, J 2.5, 9.1, 1H), 7.78-7.72 (m, 1H), 7.58-7.52 (m, 1H), 7.46-7.42 (m, 1H), 7.39-7.33 (m, 3H), 7.29-7.22 (m, 1H), 3.99 (s, 2H), 3.96-3.90 (m, 0.33H), 3.83 (s, 2H), 3.72 (p, J 8.5, 0.67H), 3.09 (d, J 7.4, 0.8H), 2.98 (d, J 7.8, 1.2H), 2.84-2.55 (m, 2H), 2.40-2.20 (m, 1.9H), 2.08-2.00 (m, 1.1H).

Biological Assays

The pharmacological properties of the compounds described herein may be confirmed by a number of pharmacological assays as described below.

Assay 1: Determination of Glutaminase Enzyme Activity

Compounds can be assessed for their ability to inhibit the enzymatic activity of recombinant Glutaminase 1 (GAC) using a biochemical assay in a 2-step procedure: 1. conversion of L-glutamine to glutamate by GAC, and 2. glutamate to alpha-ketoglutarate catalyzed by glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH). Reduction of NAD⁺ to NADH manifested by a change in absorbance is determined spectrophotometrically. A substrate solution is prepared (50 mM Tris-HCl pH 8.0, 0.2 mM EDTA, 150 mM K₂HPO₄, 0.1 mg/ml BSA, 1 mM DTT, 20 mM L-glutamine, 2 mM NAD⁺, and 10 ppm antifoam) and 50 μl of the substrate solution is to be added to a 96-well half area clear plate. The compound is added as a DMSO solution. Enzymatic reaction is started by the addition of 50 μl of enzyme solution (50 mM Tris-HCl pH 8.0, 0.2 mM EDTA, 150 mM K₂HPO₄, 0.1 mg/ml BSA, 1 mM DTT, 10 ppm antifoam, 4 units/ml GDH, 4 mM adenosine diphosphate, and 4 nM GAC) and read in a Molecular Devices M5 plate reader at 20° C. The plate reader is configured to read absorbance (λ=340 nm) in kinetic mode for 15 minutes. Data is recorded as milli-absorbance units per minute and slopes are compared to a control compound and a DMSO-only control on the same plate. Compounds with slopes less than the DMSO control can be considered as inhibitors and plate variability is assessed using the control compound. Activity of the test compound is reported as % inhibition. The data is analyzed using Graphpad Prism (Graphpad software; San Diego Calif.) for IC₅₀ determination.

Assay 2: Determination of Enzyme Activity Through Estimation of Ammonia

L-glutaminase enzyme assay can be performed using a colorimetric method by quantifying ammonia formation in a spectrophotometric analysis using Nessler's Reagent. The procedure is adopted from British Microbiology Research Journal, 4(1), 97-115, 2014, with modification.

For routine assay 0.1 ml of properly diluted enzyme (incubated with or without the test compound) is added to 0.4 ml of 0.025 M L-glutamine solution in 0.1 M boric acid borate buffer (pH 8.0). After incubation for 30 minutes at 37° C., the reaction is stopped by the addition of 0.5 ml of 1N H₂SO₄. The precipitated protein is removed by centrifugation and 0.2 ml of supernatant is added to 3.8 ml of distilled water. Thereafter, 0.5 ml of Nessler's reagent is added, and the absorbance measured at 400 nm within 1 to 3 minutes. Enzyme and substrate blanks are included in all assays, and a standard curve is prepared with ammonium chloride. The enzyme activity is expressed as unit (U)/ml. One unit of L-glutaminase is defined as the amount of enzyme that liberates one micromole (μmol) of ammonia per minute under standard conditions. The specific activity (sp. activity) is defined as the units of L-glutaminase per milligram protein. Accordingly, the change in specific activity of glutaminase in the presence and absence of test compound is reported.

Assay 3: Determination of Glutaminase Enzyme Activity Using Glutaminase

Enzyme from Mice Brain/Kidney

Step 1: Preparation of Tissue Homogenates: Male Balb/c mice were administered 0.28 M ammonium chloride in drinking water for 7 days. The animals were sacrificed and brain/kidney organs collected on dry ice. These organs were suspended in a homogenization buffer containing 20 mM phosphate buffer—pH 7.4, 0.5 mM EDTA, 5 mM 2-mercaptoethanol, 25% glycerol and 0.02% BSA. The tissue was homogenized and supernatants were stored at −80° C. until the enzyme assay was performed.

Step-2: Enzyme Assay

Aim: Compounds were assessed for their ability to inhibit the enzymatic activity of L-glutaminase present in mice brain/kidney homogenate.

Protocol: The assay was performed using a colorimetric method using Nessler's Reagent by quantifying the amount of ammonia formed as a by product during the enzymatic conversion of L-glutamine to glutamate. In the routine assay, 16 μl of tissue homogenate is added to 33 μl of Tris-Hcl phosphate buffer (pH 8) along with 1 μl of DMSO/test compound containing the desired final concentration and vortexed briefly. 50 μl of 20 mM L-glutamine Tris buffer is added to start the reaction and incubated for 15 minutes at 37° C. The ammonia formed is detected by adding 20 μl of reaction mixture to cold water in a 96 well plate followed by 20 μl of Nessler's reagent. The colour developed is measured at 450 nm. Data Analysis: Activity of the test compound is reported as % inhibition and the data is analyzed using Graphpad Prism (Graphpad software; San Diego Calif.) for IC₅₀ determination.

Results for Assay 3:

Glutaminase(Brain) activity % inhibition Ex. No. @1 μM 0.1 μM IC50 Example 1 A C — Example 2 A B C Example 3 A B C Example-4 — D — Example-5 D D — Example-6 C D — Example-7 C D — Example-8 B C D Example-9 D D — Example-10 A A A Example-11 A A A Example-12 A A B Example-13 A A A Example-14 A A B Example-15 A B A Example-16 B C D Example-17 A C D Example-18 A B A Example-19 A B A Example-20 A A A Example-21 A B A Example-22 B D — Example-23 D D — Example-24 D D — Example-25 B D — Example-26 A B — Example-27 B D — Example-28 B A — Example-29 A B B Example-30 A B A Example-31 A B D Example-32 A D — Example-33 C D — Example-34 C D — Example-35 D D — Example-36 C C — Example-37 D D — Example-38 A C D Example-39 A C — Example-40 D D — Example-41 D D — Example-42 D D — Example-101 — — — Example-102 — D — Example-103 C C — Example-104 D D — Example-105 D D — Example-106 C D — Example-107 B C D Example-108 A A B Example-109 A B C Example-110 A A A For percent (%) inhibition: A is >75% to 100%; B is >50% to ≦75%; C is >25% to ≦50% and D is ≦25%. For IC50: A is <25 nM; B is ≧25 nM to <50 nM; C is ≧50 nM to <100 nM and D is ≧100 nM to ≦400 nM.

Assay 4: In Vitro Cell Proliferation Assay in Cancer Cell Lines

Growth inhibition assays were carried out using 10% FBS supplemented media. Cells were seeded at a concentration of 5000-20,000 cells/well in a 96-well plate. Test compounds at a concentration range from 0.01 to 10000 nM were added after 24 hours. Growth was assessed using the 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MIT) dye reduction test at 0 h (prior to the addition of the test compound) and 72 hours after the addition of test compound. Absorbance was read on a Fluostar Optima (BMG Labtech, Germany) at a wave length of 450 nm. Data were analysed using GraphPad Prism and percent inhibition due to the test compound compared to the control was calculated accordingly. The results are as shown below.

Ex. No. GI50 [nM] Example 3 C Example-8 A Example-11 A Example-16 A Example-17 B Example-18 B Example-20 C Example-21 A Example-22 D Example-23 E Example-24 C Example-27 E Example-28 D Example-29 D Example-30 D Example-31 E Example-32 C Example-38 A Example-107 C Example-108 B Example-109 A For GI50: A is <100 nM; B is ≧100 nM to <400 nM; C is ≧400 nM to <1000 nM; D is ≧1000 nM to <5000 nM and E is ≧5000 nM to ≦10000 nM.

Although the invention herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the illustrative embodiments and that other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as described above. It is intended that the appended claims define the scope of the invention and that methods and structures within the scope of these claims and their equivalents be covered thereby.

All publications and patent and/or patent applications cited in this application are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated herein by reference. 

We claim:
 1. A compound of formula (I)

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-; wherein L₁ is absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, or substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl; L₃ is absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; A and B are selected from (a) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (b) A is selected from

and B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; each occurrence of R³ is, independently, halogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy; P and Q are independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, NR^(x)—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —C(═O)NH—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—NH—C(═O)—, —NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, —S(═O)_(q)NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)NR^(x)—, NR^(x)C(═S)NR^(x)—, —C(═O)—, —C(═S)—, —C(═O)ONR^(x)—, ═N—N(R^(x))—, —N(R^(x))—N═ or —NR^(x)C(═O)O—; R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y)—NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z); each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) and S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group wherein R^(z) is R^(x); q is 0, 1 or 2 and r is 0, 1 or
 2. 2. A compound of claim 1 having the formula (IA),

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-; wherein L₁ is absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, or substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl; L₃ is absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; A and B are selected from (a) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (b) A is selected from

and B is selected from

wherein at least one of A and B is substituted with one or more R³; R³ is halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy; and P and Q are independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, NR^(x)—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —C(═O)NH—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—NH—C(═O)—, —NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, —S(═O)_(q)NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)NR^(x)—, NR^(x)C(═S)NR^(x)—, —C(═O)—, —C(═S)—, —C(═O)ONR^(x)—, ═N—N(R^(x))—, —N(R^(x))—N═ or —NR^(x)C(═O)O—; R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y)—NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z); each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) and S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group wherein R^(z) is R^(x); q is 0, 1 or 2 and r is 0, 1 or
 2. 3. A compound of claim 1 or 2 wherein (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from

and R³ is hydrogen, halogen or methyl.
 4. A compound of any one of claims 1-3 wherein (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (ii) B is selected from

and A is selected from


5. A compound of claim 4, wherein (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (ii) B is selected from

and A is selected from


6. A compound of any one of claims 1-5 wherein (i) A is

and B is

or (ii) A is

and B is


7. A compound of claim 6 wherein (i) A is

and B is

or (ii) A is

and B


8. A compound of any one of claims 1-7, wherein P and Q are each independently selected from —NR^(x)C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y)), —C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH— —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, or —NR^(x)—.
 9. A compound of any one of claims 1-8, wherein P and Q are each independently selected from —NR^(x)C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)— or —NR^(x)—, wherein R^(x) and R^(y) are independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, halogen, hydroxy and substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy.
 10. A compound of any one of claims 1-9, wherein P and Q are each independently selected from —NH—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—, wherein R^(x) and R^(y) are hydrogen.
 11. A compound of any one of claims 1-10, wherein (i) each of P and Q are independently —NH—C(═O)—(CH₂)—, —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—; (ii) P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—; (iii) P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—; or (iv) P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—.
 12. A compound of formula (IB), (IC), (ID) or (IE)

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-; wherein L₁ is absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, or substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl; L₃ is absent or independently selected from O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), —(═N—N(R^(z))R^(z)), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y)—NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z); each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) and S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group wherein R^(z) is R^(x); each occurrence of R³ is hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or C₁₋₃ alkoxy; and q is 0, 1 or
 2. 13. A compound of any one of claims 1-12, wherein L₁ is absent or —NR^(x)—, wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₄ alkyl or substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₄ alkynyl; and L₃ is absent or —NR^(x)—, wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl.
 14. A compound of any one of claims 1-13, wherein L₁ is absent; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₄ alkyl; and L₃ is absent.
 15. A compound of any one of claims 1-14 wherein R³ is selected from hydrogen, halogen and substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl.
 16. A compound of any one of claims 1-15 wherein R³ is selected from fluro and methyl.
 17. A compound of any one of claims 1-16, wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, —NR^(z)R^(z), substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, and substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl.
 18. A compound of any one of claims 1-16, wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from —NR^(z)R^(z), substituted or unsubstituted aryl and substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl.
 19. A compound of any one of claims 1-16, wherein each of R¹ and R² is, independently, substituted or unsubstituted aryl.
 20. A compound of any one of claims 1-16, wherein each of R¹ and R² is, independently, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl.
 21. A compound of any one of claims 1-16, wherein i. R¹ is substituted or unsubstituted aryl and R² is substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl; ii. R¹ is substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl and R² is substituted or unsubstituted aryl; iii. both R¹ and R² are, independently, substituted or unsubstituted aryl; or iv. both R¹ and R² are, independently, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl.
 22. A compound of any one of claims 1-21, wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from


23. A compound of any one of claims 1-22, wherein each of R^(x) and R^(y) is hydrogen.
 24. A compound selected from 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-{5-[4-(5-(2-(2-methoxyphenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)but-1-ynyl]pyridin-2-yl}acetamide; 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-{5-[4-(5-(2-(2-methoxyphenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl]pyridin-2-yl}acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-2-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-2-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyrazin-2-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(2-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyrimidin-5-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; N-(6-Methyl-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamido)pyridin-3-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(3-(Methylsulfonyl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(4-(Methylsulfonyl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl) pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(3-(Trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(3-Cyanophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(3-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(2-Fluorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(3-Fluorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; N-(6-Fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-4-yl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; 2-Chloro-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)propanamide; 2-Chloro-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butanamide; 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl) butyl) pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(2-Chlorophenyl)-N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl) butyl) pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; N-(5-(4-(5-(2-(1H-pyrazol-1-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide; 2-(Pyrazin-2-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl) butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide; 2-(3-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(4-(Methylsulfonamido)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl) butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl) acetamide; Tert-butyl 4-(4-(2-oxo-2-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-ylamino)ethyl)phenyl)piperidine-1-carboxylate; 2-(4-(Piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido) pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide hydrochloride; 2-(3,5-Bis(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy) phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(3-(Piperidin-4-yl)phenyl)-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido) pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide hydrochloride; 3-Fluoro-6-methyl-N-(5-(4-(6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)picolinamide; N-(6-fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; N-(6-Fluoro-5-(4-(5-(2-(3-(methylsulfonamido)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)butyl)pyridin-2-yl)-2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide; N,N′-(5,5′-(Butane-1,4-diyl)bis(pyridine-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl) acetamide; N-(5-(4-(3-Fluoro-4-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)phenyl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; N-(5-(4-(3-Fluoro-4-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)phenyl)butyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
 25. A compound of formula (II)

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-; wherein L₁ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₁₀ cycloalkyl; L₃ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; A and B are selected from (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (iii) both A and B are independently selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; each occurrence of R³ is independently, hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkoxy, or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkylamino; P and Q are independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, NR^(x)—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —C(═O)NH—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—NH—C(═O)—, —NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, —S(═O)_(q)NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)NR^(x)—, NR^(x)C(═S)NR^(x)—, —C(═O)—, —C(═S)—, —C(═O)ONR^(x)—, ═N—N(R^(x))—, —N(R^(x))—N═ or —NR^(x)C(═O)O—; R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y)—NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z); each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) and S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group wherein R^(z) is R^(x); q is 0, 1 or 2 and r is 0, 1 or
 2. 26. A compound of claim 25, wherein (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from


27. A compound of claim 25, wherein both A and B are independently selected from


28. A compound of any one of claims 25-27, wherein L₂ is

wherein each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is independently selected from hydrogen, nitro, hydroxy, cyano, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkylalkyl, and substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkenyl; or any two of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted, saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR′ (where R′ is H or alkyl) or S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR′) group; and each of s, t, u and v is 0, 1 or 2 with the proviso that the sum of s, t, u and v is not
 0. 29. A compound of any on of claims 25-28, wherein each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, and C₁₋₃ alkyl or any two of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) when bound to a common atom, may be joined to form oxo (═O) or a substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl group.
 30. A compound of claim 29, wherein each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and the sum of s, t, u and v is 1, 2, 3 or
 4. 31. A compound of any one of claims 25-30, wherein L₂ is selected from


32. A compound of any one of claims 25-30, wherein L (L₁-L₂-L₃) is selected from


33. A compound of any one of claims 25-30, wherein L (L₁-L₂-L₃) is selected from


34. A compound of formula (III)

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-; L₁ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₁₀ cycloalkyl; L₃ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— or —NR^(x)—; A and B are selected from (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; each occurrence of R³ is, independently, hydrogen, halogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy; P and Q are independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, NR^(x)—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —C(═O)NH—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—NH—C(═O)—, —NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, S(═O)_(q)NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)NR^(x)—, NR^(x)C(═S)NR^(x)—, —C(═O)—, —C(═S)—, —C(═O)ONR^(x)—, ═N—N(R^(x))—, —N(R^(x))—N═ or —NR^(x)C(═O)O—; R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—N(R^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR, —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y)—NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z); each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) and S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group wherein R^(z) is R^(x); q is 0, 1 or 2 and r is 0, 1 or
 2. 35. A compound of claim 34, wherein (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from,

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from

wherein each of A and B are optionally substituted with one or more R³; wherein each occurrence of R³ is, independently, hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy.
 36. A compound of any one of claims 34-35, wherein (i) A is selected from

and B is selected from,

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from


37. A compound of any one of claims 34-36, wherein (i) A is

and B is selected from

or (ii) A is selected from

and B is selected from


38. A compound of any one of claims 34-37, wherein (i) A is

and B is

or (ii) A is

and B is


39. A compound of any one of claims 25-38, wherein P and Q are each independently selected from —NR^(x)C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))_(r)—NR^(x)—C(═O)—, —NH—C(═O)—C(R^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH— —NR^(x)C(═O)—, —NR^(x)C(═S)—, —NR^(x)S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)NR^(x)—, —C(═S)NR^(x)—, or —NR^(x)—.
 40. A compound of any one of claims 25-38, wherein P and Q are each independently selected from —NR^(x)C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NR^(x)—, —NR^(x)C(═O)— or —NR^(x)—, wherein R^(x) and R^(y) are independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, halogen, hydroxy and substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy.
 41. A compound of any one of claims 25-38, wherein P and Q are each independently selected from —NH—C(═O)—(CR^(x)R^(y))—, —(CR^(x)R^(y))—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—, wherein R^(x) and R^(y) are hydrogen.
 42. A compound of any one of claims 25-38, wherein (i) each of P and Q are independently —NH—C(═O)—(CH₂)—, —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—; (ii) P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH—; (iii) P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH—, —NH—C(═O)— or —NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—; or (iv) P is —(CH₂)—C(═O)—NH— and Q is —NH—C(═O)—CH₂—.
 43. A compound having the formula (IIIA) or (IIIB):

or a tautomer thereof, prodrug thereof, N-oxide thereof, stereoisomer thereof, pharmaceutically acceptable ester thereof or pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof, wherein L is -L₁-L₂-L₃-; L₁ is absent or independently selected from substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₁₀ cycloalkyl; L₃ is absent or independently selected substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, O, S, —S(═O)_(q)—, —C(═O)— and —NR^(x)—; R¹ and R² are independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, —C(═O)OR^(z), —C(═O)R^(z), —C(═S)R^(z), —C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —C(═O)ONR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)R^(z), —NR^(z)S(═O)₂R^(z), ═N—NR^(z)R^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —NR^(x)C(═S)R^(y)—NR^(z)C(═S)NR^(z)R^(z), —SONR^(z)R^(z), —SO₂NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —OR^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —OC(═O)R^(z), —OC(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)NR^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)OR^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)NR^(z)R^(z), —R^(z)C(═O)R^(z), —R^(z)OC(═O)R^(z), —SR^(z), —SOR^(z), —SO₂R^(z), —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═O)R^(z) or —CR^(x)R^(y)C(═S)R^(z); each occurrence of R^(x), R^(y) and R^(z) is independently selected from hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclic ring, substituted heterocyclylalkyl ring, or substituted or unsubstituted amino, or any two of R^(x) and R^(y) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR^(z) and S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR^(z)) group wherein R^(z) is R^(x); each occurrence of R³ is, independently, hydrogen, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl, amino, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkoxy; and q is 0, 1 or
 2. 44. A compound of any one of claims 25-43, wherein L₁ is absent, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl or —NR^(x)—, wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₈ cycloalkyl; and L₃ is absent; substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl or —NR^(x)—, wherein R^(x) is hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl.
 45. A compound of any one of claims 25-43, wherein L₁ is absent or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl; L₂ is substituted or unsubstituted C₄₋₈ cycloalkyl; and L₃ is absent or substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl.
 46. A compound of any one of claims 25-43, wherein (i) L₁ and L₃ are absent; (ii) L₁ and L₃ are —CH₂—; (iii) L₁ is absent and L₃ is —CH₂—; or (iv) L₁ is —CH₂— and L₃ is absent.
 47. A compound of any one of claims 34-43, wherein L₂ is

wherein each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is independently selected from hydrogen, nitro, hydroxy, cyano, halogen, substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₆ alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkenyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₂₋₆ alkynyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkylalkyl, and substituted or unsubstituted C₃₋₆ cycloalkenyl; or any two of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) may be joined to form (i) a substituted or unsubstituted, saturated or unsaturated 3-14 membered ring, which may optionally include one or more heteroatoms which may be the same or different and are selected from O, NR′ (where R′ is H or alkyl) or S, or (ii) an oxo (═O), thio (═S) or imino (═NR′) group; each of s, t, u and v is independently 0, 1 or 2 with the proviso that the sum of s, t, u and v is not 0 or
 1. 47. A compound of any one of claims 34-47, wherein each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, C₁₋₃ alkyl or any two of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) when bound to a common atom may be joined to form oxo (═O) or substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkyl group.
 48. A compound of any one of claims 34-47, wherein each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and the sum of s, t, u and v is 2, 3 or
 4. 49. A compound of any one of claims 34-47, wherein (i) each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and each of s, t, u and v is 1; (ii) each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen, s is 0, and each of t, u and v is 1; (iii) each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen, s is 0, each of t and v is 1 and u is 2; or (iv) each occurrence of R^(a), R^(b), R^(c), R^(d), R^(e), R^(f), R^(g) and R^(h) is hydrogen and s is 0, t is 1 and the sum of u and v is 1, 2 or
 3. 50. A compound of any one of claims 34-49, wherein L₂ is selected from


51. A compound of any one of claims 34-49, wherein L (L₁-L₂-L₃) is selected from


52. A compound of any one of claims 25-49, wherein L (L₁-L₂-L₃) is


53. A compound of any one of claims 25-52, wherein each occurrence of R³ is independently selected from hydrogen, halogen and substituted or unsubstituted C₁₋₃ alkyl;
 54. A compound of claim 53, wherein each occurrence of R³ is independently selected from hydrogen, fluro and methyl.
 55. A compound of any one of claims 25-54, wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from halogen, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, —NR^(z)R^(z), substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclyl, substituted or unsubstituted heterocyclylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, substituted or unsubstituted arylalkyl, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl, and substituted or unsubstituted heteroarylalkyl;
 56. A compound of any one of claims 25-54, wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from —NR^(z)R^(z), substituted or unsubstituted aryl and substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl.
 57. A compound of any one of claims 25-54, wherein each of R¹ and R² is, independently, substituted or unsubstituted aryl.
 58. A compound of any one of claims 25-54, wherein each of R¹ and R² is, independently, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl.
 59. A compound of any one of claims 25-54, wherein i. R¹ is substituted or unsubstituted aryl and R² is substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl; ii. R¹ is substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl and R² is substituted or unsubstituted aryl; iii. both R¹ and R² are, independently, substituted or unsubstituted aryl; or iv. both R¹ and R² are, independently, substituted or unsubstituted heteroaryl.
 60. A compound of any one of claims 25-54, wherein each of R¹ and R² is independently selected from


61. A compound of any one of claims 25-54, wherein each of R^(x) and R^(y) is hydrogen;
 62. A compound selected from N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-phenylacetamide); N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl)bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide); N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-3-yl)acetamide); N,N′-(5,5′-(cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamide); 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-((4-((5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)methyl)cyclohexyl)methyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; N,N′-(5,5′-(Cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene))bis(1,3,4-thiadiazole-5,2-diyl))bis(2-(pyridin-2-yl)acetamide); and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
 63. A compound selected from 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-3-yl)-N-(5-((3-(5-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)cyclobutyl)methyl)pyridin-2-yl)acetamide; 2-(Pyridin-2-yl)-N-(5-(3-((6-(2-(3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl)acetamido)pyridazin-3-yl)methyl)cyclobutyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)acetamide; and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof.
 64. A pharmaceutical composition comprising a compound of any one of claims 1-63 and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.
 65. The pharmaceutical composition of claim 64, further comprising one or more additional therapeutic agents selected from anti-cancer agents, anti-inflammatory agents, immunosuppressive agents, steroids, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents, antihistamines, analgesics, and mixtures thereof.
 66. A method of inhibiting a catalytic activity of a glutaminase present in a cell, comprising contacting the cell with an effective amount of a compound of any one of claims 1-63.
 67. The method of claim 66, wherein the inhibition takes place in a subject suffering from a disease or disorder selected from cancer, neurological disorders or immunological diseases, bone disorders, inflammatory diseases, immune diseases, nervous system diseases, metabolic diseases, respiratory diseases, thrombosis, and cardiac diseases.
 68. Use of a compound of any one of claims 1-63 in the manufacture of a medicament for the treatment of a disease, disorder, or condition that would benefit from inhibiting catalytic activity of glutaminase.
 69. A method for the treatment of a glutamine associated disease or disorder, comprising the step of administering to a subject in need thereof an effective amount of compound of any one of claims 1-63.
 70. The method of claim 69, further comprising the step of administering simultaneously or sequentially to a subject in need thereof at least one other anti-cancer agent, anti-inflammatory agent, immunosuppressive agent, steroid, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent, antihistamine, analgesic, or a mixture thereof.
 71. The method of claim 69 or 70, wherein the glutamine associated disease, disorder or condition is an immune system-related disease, a disease or disorder involving inflammation, cancer or other proliferative disease, a hepatic disease or disorder, or a renal disease or disorder.
 72. The method of claim 69 or 70, wherein the glutamine associated disease, disorder or condition is selected from inflammation, glomerulonephritis, uveitis, hepatic diseases or disorders, renal diseases or disorders, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, vasculitis, dermatitis, osteoarthritis, inflammatory muscle disease, allergic rhinitis, vaginitis, interstitial cystitis, scleroderma, osteoporosis, eczema, allogeneic or xenogeneic transplantation, graft rejection, graft-versus-host disease, lupus erythematosus, pulmonary fibrosis, dermatomyositis, thyroiditis, myasthenia gravis, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, cystic fibrosis, chronic relapsing hepatitis, primary biliary cirrhosis, allergic conjunctivitis, hepatitis, atopic dermatitis, asthma, Sjogren's syndrome, organ transplant rejection, multiple sclerosis, Guillain-Barre, autoimmune uveitis, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, pernicious anemia, autoimmune thrombocytopenia, temporal arteritis, anti-phospholipid syndrome, vasculitides such as Wegener's granulomatosis, Behcet's disease, psoriasis, dermatitis herpetiformis, pemphigus vulgaris, vitiligo, Crohn's disease, colitis, ulcerative colitis, primary biliary cirrhosis, autoimmune hepatitis, Type 1 or immune-mediated diabetes mellitus, Grave's disease. Hashimoto's thyroiditis, autoimmune oophoritis and orchitis, autoimmune disorder of the adrenal gland, systemic lupus erythematosus, polymyositis, dermatomyositis, ankylosing spondylitis, transplant rejection, skin graft rejection, arthritis, bone diseases associated with increased bone resorption; ileitis, Barrett's syndrome, adult respiratory distress syndrome, chronic obstructive airway disease; corneal dystrophy, trachoma, onchocerciasis, sympathetic ophthalmitis, endophthalmitis; gingivitis, periodontitis; tuberculosis; leprosy; uremic complications, nephrosis; sclerodermatitis, psoriasis, chronic demyelinating diseases of the nervous system, AIDS-related neurodegeneration, Alzheimer's disease, infectious meningitis, encephalomyelitis, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis viral or autoimmune encephalitis; autoimmune disorders, immune-complex vasculitis, systemic lupus and erythematodes; systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); cardiomyopathy, ischemic heart disease hypercholesterolemia, atherosclerosis, preeclampsia; chronic liver failure, brain and spinal cord trauma, and cancer.
 73. The method of claim 69 or 70, wherein the glutamine associated disease, disorder or condition is selected from hematopoietic tumors of lymphoid lineage, leukemia, acute lymphocytic leukemia, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, B-cell lymphoma, T-cell lymphoma, Hodgkin's lymphoma, non-Hodgkins lymphoma, hairy cell lymphoma and Burkett's lymphoma; hematopoietic tumors of myeloid lineage, acute myelogenous leukemias, chronic myelogenous leukemias, myelodysplastic syndrome, promyelocytic leukemia; carcinoma of the bladder, carcinoma of the breast, carcinoma of the colon, carcinoma of the kidney, carcinoma of the liver, carcinoma of the lung, small cell lung cancer, esophageal cancer, gall bladder cancer, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, stomach cancer, cervical cancer, thyroid cancer, prostate cancer, skin cancer, squamous cell carcinoma; tumors of mesenchymal origin, fibrosarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma; tumors of the central and peripheral nervous system, astrocytoma, neuroblastoma, glioma, schwannoma; melanoma, seminoma, teratocarcinoma, osteosarcoma, xenoderoma pigmentosum, keratoctanthoma, thyroid follicular cancer and Kaposi's sarcoma. 